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I'll apologise now since this is slightly off topic, sorry .

I'm wondering if this is an American English v's an Australian English (which is more British) language variation or if it is a typo?

In Bigger, we are on Unit 2 and the poem (The Ship that Sails) uses the word then the way I would normally use the word than.

I was wondering about this today, and then happended to see another post on here where someone also used the word then in place of than.

So, help my curiousity, do you use the word than in American English?

Yes, we do use the word than.

We use then and than like this:

I like apples better than bananas.

If you're going to the store then get some milk.

not sure the rules for then and than. But we do use both.

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Thanks Lee Ann, that's the same way we use it here .

Thanks for letting me know.

Here's what I found on the topic:

Then vs. Than

Then is used as a time expression.

Examples:

I'll see you then.
I'll be at the party. We can speak then.


Than is used for comparisons.

Examples:

He's lived here longer than I have.
His skills are very different than mine.

HTH

I read somewhere that one of the most common grammar mistakes we make today is then vs. than.

And my pet peeve is the misuse of good vs. well!

OK....I'm getting nervous. Is this covered in R&S grammar???

[Look at the very bottom - Rule 10 - for the 'then & than' rule]

Adjectives and Adverbs

Definition - Adjectives are words that describe nouns or pronouns. They may come before the word they describe (That is a cute puppy.) or they may follow the word they describe (That puppy is cute.).

Definition - Adverbs are words that modify everything but nouns and pronouns. They modify adjectives, verbs, and other adverbs. A word is an adverb if it answers how, when, or where.

The only adverbs that cause grammatical problems are those that answer the question how, so focus on these.
Examples: He speaks slowly.
Answers the question how.
He speaks very slowly.
Answers the question how slowly.


Rule 1. Generally, if a word answers the question how, it is an adverb. If it can have an -ly added to it, place it there.
Examples: She thinks slow/slowly.
She thinks how? slowly.
She is a slow/slowly thinker.
Slow does not answer how, so no -ly is attached. Slow is an adjective here.
She thinks fast/fastly.
Fast answers the question how, so it is an adverb. But fast never has an -ly attached to it.
We performed bad/badly.
Badly describes how we performed.


Rule 2. A special -ly rule applies when four of the senses - taste, smell, look, feel - are the verbs. Do not ask if these senses answer the question how to determine if -ly should be attached. Instead, ask if the sense verb is being used actively. If so, use the -ly.
Examples: Roses smell sweet/sweetly.
Do the roses actively smell with noses? No, so no -ly.
The woman looked angry/angrily.
Did the woman actively look with eyes or are we describing her appearance? We are only describing appearance, so no -ly.
The woman looked angry/angrily at the paint splotches.
Here the woman did actively look with eyes, so the -ly is added.
She feels bad/badly about the news.

She is not feeling with fingers, so no -ly.



Good vs. Well

Rule 3. The word good is an adjective, while well is an adverb.
Examples: You did a good job.
Good describes the job.
You did the job well.

Well answers how.

You smell good today.
Describes your odor, not how you smell with your nose, so follow with the adjective.
You smell well for someone with a cold.
You are actively smelling with a nose here, so follow with the adverb.


Rule 4. When referring to health, use well rather than good.
Examples: I do not feel well.
You do not look well today.

NOTE: You may use good with feel when you are not referring to health.
Example: I feel good about my decision to learn Spanish.


Rule 5. A common error in using adjectives and adverbs arises from using the wrong form for comparison. For instance, to describe one thing we would say poor, as in, "She is poor." To compare two things, we should say poorer, as in, "She is the poorer of the two women." To compare more than two things, we should say poorest, as in, "She is the poorest of them all."
Examples: One Two Three or More
sweet sweeter sweetest
bad worse worst
efficient* more efficient* most efficient*
*Usually with words of three or more syllables, don't add -er or -est. Use more or most in front of the words.


Rule 6. Never drop the -ly from an adverb when using the comparison form.
Correct: She spoke quickly.
She spoke more quickly than he did.
Incorrect: She spoke quicker than he did.
Correct: Talk quietly.
Talk more quietly.
Incorrect: Talk quieter.


Rule 7. When this, that, these, and those are followed by nouns, they are adjectives. When they appear without a noun following them, they are pronouns.
Examples: This house is for sale.
This is an adjective here.
This is for sale.
This is a pronoun here.


Rule 8. This and that are singular, whether they are being used as adjectives or as pronouns. This points to something nearby while that points to something "over there."
Examples: This dog is mine.
That dog is hers.
This is mine.
That is hers.


Rule 9. These and those are plural, whether they are being used as adjectives or as pronouns. These points to something nearby while those points to something "over there."
Examples: These babies have been smiling for a long time.
These are mine.
Those babies have been crying for hours.
Those are yours.


Rule 10. Use than to show comparison. Use then to answer the question when.
Examples: I would rather go skiing than rock climbing.
First we went skiing; then we went rock climbing.

Melanie,

Yes, this is all covered in Rod and Staff English (and "THEN" some)!
And who knows ladies, in the poem, I may have typed the wrong "then" or "than" by mistake. Re-checking thousands and thousands of words in tiny print make my eyes blur over at times!

Blessings,
Carrie

Hillcrest Academy wrote:[Look at the very bottom - Rule 10 - for the 'then & than' rule]
Good vs. Well

Rule 3. The word good is an adjective, while well is an adverb.
Examples: You did a good job.
Good describes the job.
You did the job well.

I tell my children..."You can't DO something good but you can BE a good something!". That helps them remember the good vs. well rule!

Is there a place where we can find corrections that need to be made? If not, that would be a good idea to start a place on this board for it. That way we won't have to search all over the forum for a question that has already been answered years ago. Anyone who found a typo could post it to that board and it could be verified that it really is a typo so that we all can change it in our guides. And if the guides are ever updated, Carrie could just use the suggestions that we have given to find the typos in each guide. (By the way I think I have only ever found two or three, but I am sure with as much as you guys have to write, there are bound to be a few mistakes.)

Blessings!
Allison

Just to let you know, the current version of Bigger Hearts has the word "then" changed to "than" in the poem in Unit 2. So, it is currently correct in Bigger.

We do stay on top of corrections with each subsequent printing of a guide. To keep a current list of corrections online to be added to for every reprint of each guide would be very difficult, as each guide goes into a reprint every year or two. We only issue an updated copyright when the guide has major revisions due to a book going out of print. However, with each reprint of a guide we make needed minor changes, so the reprints differ in this respect.

You'd be surprised at how clean the guides actually are when looking at the sheer volume of typed words overall.

Blessings,
Carrie

Oh. I hope I didn't sound like I was complaining! I am quite impressed by how few mistakes I have found. I have proofread books before, and I know how painstaking a process it can be! I suppose I have an older edition. I bought it second hand. Please know that I totally appreciate the high quality program that Heart of Dakota is, and I thank the Lord at least once a week for leading me to it.
Blessings!
Allison