As The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language puts it (page 1,317), the terms in a “rather than” sentence are sometimes “clearly non-coordinative”—that is, they’re not parallel. How to use rather than in a sentence. I decided to wait rather than leave. would rather/would sooner . We ought to invest in education rather than defense. Example: twenty-three hundred (simpler than two thousand three hundred) Large round numbers are often spelled out, but be … I would rather spend my time traveling than working. I ‘d rather… Rather than definition is - —used with the infinitive form of a verb to indicate negation as a contrary choice or wish. Even though this also usually means you cannot choose both, rather than feels a bit more formal because it highlights you like one option, rather than … One form of this would be “but rather than that,” which essentially means “instead of this, it’s that.” Consider the following sentences: I expected them to have yellowtail at the fish shop for me to buy. If “rather than” comes at the end of a sentence, then there is no need for a comma. Examples: He went to the bookstore rather than the library. . Forums Grammar & Sentence Structure 0 112,688 + 0. . . So theoretically, rather than should be followed by a whole clause, a whole noun plus verb clause, but because we can drop common words in the second branch of parallelism including comparisons, in practice, any grammatical structure can come after rather than… She intended to study commerce, but, rather than … Rather than definition: instead of; in place of | Meaning, pronunciation, translations and examples The simplest way to express large numbers is usually best. That's the big idea. Than starts a clause. The book gives this example: “They obeyed the order rather than … When the main clause has a to-infinitive, rather than is usually followed by an infinitive without to. Rule 6. Thank you very much A company should pour their money into protecting a polluted environmnet rather than … would rather/sooner + infinitive … (than) We use would rather/sooner + infinitive (without to) to talk about preference.We can use it with than (+noun/infinitive) in affirmative sentences or with or in questions. instead of (verbs) It’s very early in the day – I ’d prefer to have a coffee, rather than a beer It’s very early in the day – I’d prefer to have a … OR I decided to wait rather than … Rather than … Download full-size image from Pinterest . Hello Can you tell me how to use'' rather than'' in sentences. would prefer . She bought a car rather than renting one. Alternatively, if it comes at the beginning of a sentence, then you will need to use a comma at the end of its phrase. would rather, would prefer – summary chart. Rather than connotes a situation where you are asked about something and you like both options and you need to choose your favourite. rather than (verbs) would prefer . An –ing form is also possible. . But rather than that, I had to buy tuna.