rather than

¹rather than

conjunction

Definition of RATHER THAN

1

—used with the infinitive form of a verb to indicate negation as a contrary choice or wish <rather than continue the argument, he walked away> <chose to sing rather than play violin>

2

: and not <obscures rather than resolves the problem> <why do one thing rather than another?> <happy rather than sad>

First Known Use of RATHER THAN

14th century

Rhymes with RATHER THAN

advance man, Alcoran, also-ran, Ameslan, anchorman, as one man, astrakhan, Astrakhan, ataman, Athelstan, attackman, balmacaan, Bantustan, bartizan, black-and-tan, bogeyman, boogeyman, businessman, Caliban, cameraman, caravan, cattleman, Civitan, cornerman, counterman, counterplan, countryman, courtesan, cutoff man, dairyman, defenseman, detail man, everyman, exciseman, expressman, family man, fancy-dan, fancy man, frying pan, funnyman, gamelan, garageman, garbageman, Hamadan, handyman, harmattan, hatchet man, Hindustan, hotelman, in the can, Isle of Man, jerrican, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, leading man, man-for-man, man-to-man, master plan, middleman, minivan, minuteman, Monaghan, moneyman, mountain man, muscleman, Occitan, ombudsman, Omdurman, overman, Pakistan, Parmesan, partisan, pattypan, Peking man, Peter Pan, pivotman, plainclothesman, Port Sudan, Powhatan, repairman, rewrite man, safetyman, sandwich man, selectman, serviceman, signalman, spick-and-span, superman, tallyman, tamarin, to a man, triggerman, trimaran, turbofan, Turkistan, vacuum pan, weatherman, workingman, yataghan