Which to use
“then” is an adverb and “than” is a conjunction - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #91
- “then” frequency rank
- #77
- “than” frequency rank
- 99
- confusion score
“Then” is about time or sequence (first this, then that). “Than” is for comparisons (bigger than, rather than). They are never interchangeable.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | then | than |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | At that time. | Used in comparisons, to introduce the basis of comparison. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set then and than apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
then and than form a confusable pair in the English index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by a single letter - e in “then” becomes a in “than” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 99, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
then is recorded at frequency rank #91, classified as anadv, pronounced /ðɛn/. than is at rank #77, tagged as aconj, pronounced /ðæn/.
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between "then" and "than"?
Can "then" and "than" be used interchangeably?
Remembering then vs than
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adverb, it's “then”; for a conjunction, it's “than”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “then” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable