Then vs Than: which is correct?

Two jobs that never overlap

Then and than do not share any meaning, which actually makes them easier than the homophone pairs once you see the split. Then is about time and sequence. It answers when or what happens next: we had dinner, then we watched a film; back then, things were different; if it rains, then we will stay in. Anywhere you could substitute a phrase like after that, at that time, or in that case, the word is then.

Than is about comparison and nothing else. It links two things being measured against each other: she runs faster than I do, this is cheaper than that, nothing matters more than safety. Than appears after comparative words like faster, cheaper, more, less, better, worse, taller, and after rather and other. If two things are being weighed against one another, the word is than.

Why a single letter causes so much trouble

Unlike its/it's or your/you're, then and than are not true homophones in careful speech; than has a flatter a sound and then a clearer e. But in fast, unstressed everyday speech the two vowels blur into the same neutral schwa sound, so the ear stops distinguishing them, and the spelling slip follows. The difference of one letter on the page mirrors a difference of almost nothing in casual pronunciation.

Because the meanings never overlap, the error is always a pure slip rather than a misunderstanding. No one genuinely thinks a comparison involves time; they just typed the wrong vowel. That is good news, because it means a quick category check, am I comparing, or am I sequencing in time, instantly reveals the right word. You are not learning a hard rule, just catching a fast-typing mistake.

Examples of each

Then for sequence: turn left, then take the second right; we saved up, and then we booked the trip; first comes the draft, then the edit. Then for a point in time: I was a student then; call me back then; by then it was too late. Then in a conditional: if you finish early, then let me know. In all of these, time or order is doing the work.

Than for comparison: this winter was colder than last; he knows more than he admits; I would rather read than scroll; she arrived later than expected; there is no better option than this one. Every one of these sets two things against each other. The tell is the comparative word nearby: colder, more, rather, later, better.

Watch the pattern with rather and other, which always pair with than: I would rather walk than drive; she had no choice other than to agree. If you see rather or other introducing a choice or contrast, the partner word is than, never then.

How to never slip again

The mnemonic that sticks for most people is that than and comparison both involve an a, while then and time and sequence both lean on an e (then, when, sequence all carry that e sound). Another framing: then sits next to when, and both are about time. Tie the vowel to the job and the choice becomes automatic.

On a proofreading pass, the check is one quick question per instance: is this sentence comparing two things, or is it about time and order? Comparison means than; time means then. Because the categories never overlap, the answer is never ambiguous. Spell-check will not help, since both are real words, so make the category question a habit. Run the quiz above, which deliberately mixes sequence, comparison, and the rather/other constructions, until the right vowel comes without thinking.