より・どちら・いちばん — Making Comparisons

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to compare two or more things in Japanese using より (yori), どちら (dochira), and いちばん (ichiban). These three words are the building blocks for making comparisons in everyday conversation.

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In English, we say "A is more ___ than B" or "Which is more ___?" or "A is the most ___." In Japanese, the structure is different but simple:

• より (yori) = "than" (marks the thing being compared against)
• どちら (dochira) = "which (one of two)" (used for questions)
• いちばん (ichiban) = "most / number one" (marks the superlative)

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1. Using より (yori) — "than"

Pattern:
[A] は [B] より [adjective] です。
→ "A is more [adjective] than B."

• より always comes after the thing being compared against (B).
• The adjective comes at the end.

Examples:

Note: The adjective can be い-adjective (e.g., 小さい, 高い, 暑い) or な-adjective (e.g., 静かだ → 静かです). For な-adjectives, just add です.小高暑静

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2. Using どちら (dochira) — "which (of two)"

Pattern:
[A] と [B] と、どちらが [adjective] ですか。
→ "Between A and B, which is more [adjective]?"

• どちら is only used when comparing two items.
• The answer uses のほうが (no hou ga) = "the one that is more..."

Examples:

Answer pattern:
[A] のほうが [adjective] です。
→ "A is more [adjective]."

Example: 犬のほうが好きです。(Inu no hou ga suki desu. — I like dogs more.)犬好

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3. Using いちばん (ichiban) — "the most / number one"

Pattern:
[Group] で、[A] が いちばん [adjective] です。
→ "Among [group], A is the most [adjective]."

• いちばん means "most" or "number one."
• Use で to mark the group (e.g., クラスで = in the class, 日本で = in Japan).日本

Examples:

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❌ Wrong: 日本はインドより小さいです。 (This is actually correct — but learners often put より in the wrong place.)日本小

❌ Wrong: どちらが好きですか。 (This is fine if context is clear, but beginners often forget the A と B と part.)好

✅ Correct: 犬と猫と、どちらが好きですか。 (Always include both items with と before どちら.)犬猫好

❌ Wrong: いちばん好き果物はりんごです。 (Missing で and が.)好果物

✅ Correct: 果物の中で、りんごがいちばん好きです。 (Use で for the group, が for the item.)果物中好

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Fill in the blanks with より, どちら, or いちばん.

1. 夏は冬＿＿＿暑いです。
   (Natsu wa fuyu ___ atsui desu.)
   → Answer: より夏冬暑

   夏冬暑

2. コーラとジュースと、＿＿＿が好きですか。
   (Koora to juusu to, ___ ga suki desu ka.)
   → Answer: どちら好

   好

3. クラスで、だれが＿＿＿頭がいいですか。
   (Kurasu de, dare ga ___ atama ga ii desu ka.)
   → Answer: いちばん頭

   頭

Try making your own sentences:

• Compare two cities you know using より.
• Ask a friend a どちら question about food.
• Say what your favorite season is using いちばん.

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Next step: Practice making comparisons with real things around you — compare your city, your favorite foods, or your friends. Then move on to learning ほうが (hou ga) for softer comparisons, and ほど (hodo) for "not as...as."