Word.ws English Dictionary

How to use rather in a sentence

40 example sentences · adverb, adjective, interjection

Rather means used to specify a choice or preference; preferably, in preference to. (Now usually followed by than). Example: “I'd rather not have spent all the money, but it really was an emergency.”

Examples of rather by meaning

adverbUsed to specify a choice or preference; preferably, in preference to. (Now usually followed by than).

  • I'd rather not have spent all the money, but it really was an emergency.
  • I would like this one rather than the other one.
  • I s'pose we'd better clean the kitchen, but we had much rather not do anything right now.

adverbUsed to introduce a contradiction; on the contrary.

  • It wasn't supposed to be popular; rather, it was supposed to get the job done.
  • She didn't go along, but rather went home instead.
  • Or are they rather properties of the lingua franca that is presently most frequently used in this function – English?2022, Sabine Fiedler, Cyril Robert Brosch, “The aim of this book” (chapter 4), in Esperanto – Lingua Franca and Language Community, John...

adverbIntroducing a qualification or clarification; more precisely. (Now usually preceded by or.).

  • I didn't want to leave. Or rather I did, just not alone.
  • In the present connection—or rather as a transition from the subject that had started their conversation—such talk had been distressingly out of place.1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter XXIV, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC, pages...

adverbSomewhat, quite; to an unexpected degree.

  • We had some rather worse news today.
  • We’ll be seeing rather a lot of you over the next few days.
  • Translated from the original Latin, it reads, “Ivan the third; does it with birds.” Rather juvenile, don’t you think?2005, Annabelle du Fouet, “The murky world from whence it all came” (chapter 2), in Weather Balloons Make Rotten Sex Toys, Ellora's Cave...

adjectivePrior; earlier; former.

  • Now no man dwelleth at the rather town of Damietta.1900, John Mandeville, The Travels of Sir John Mandeville (version in modern spelling)

interjectionAn enthusiastic affirmation.

  • Would you like some? –Rather!
  • "Do you mean to say, young man," she said frostily, "that you expect me to drink this stuff?" ¶ "Rather!1919, P. G. Wodehouse, My Man Jeeves
  • "Oh, rather, sir.1967, Peter Pook, Banker Pook Confesses

nounA choice or a preference.

  • If I had my rathers I'd make up my own band.1973, Chester B. Himes, Black on Black, Baby Sister and Selected Writings, page 46
  • I would rather do it by myself.2000, Wendell Berry, Jayber Crow, A Novel, page 280

verbTo prefer; to prefer to.

  • You'd rather us dead.
  • The ones who knew said nothing, rathering to die than let on they had been hustled by two negative dudes.1984, Bruce Brooks, The Moves Make the Man
  • So you must excuse my saying anything I did: all it was, that up to the very last I had understood us all to be friendly — apart, that is, from his rathering me not there.2002, Elizabeth Bowen, The Heat of the Day

More sentences with rather

  • The essay was praised for its abstractive qualities, showing insight rather than repetition.From the entry abstractive
  • Write 0.0 to indicate a floating point number rather than the integer zero.From the entry zero
  • We hope that all aspects of the project will be open rather than paywalled.From the entry open
  • The frequency for electric power in the Americas is generally 60 Hz rather than 50.From the entry frequency
  • Handicraft is less standardized then industrial products, hence less artistic or rather flawless.From the entry industrial
  • A Japanese saw is one that cuts on the pull stroke rather than on the push stroke.From the entry Japanese
  • After a split second of hesitation, the second baseman leaped for the ball—or, rather, stumbled for it.From the entry for
  • J.F.K. "quarantined" Cuba rather than blockading it to avoid needless escalation of the conflict.From the entry quarantine
  • He was never seen as the boss, but rather as a friend.From the entry as
  • I'd rather MoM (did) not stay, cuz the best thing about a holiday is not working.From the entry not
  • The soup is rather spicy. Are you good with that, or would you like something else?From the entry good
  • In my opinion this claim sounds in damages rather than in an injunction.From the entry sound
  • The politician was mocked in the press for his reliance on spin rather than facts.From the entry spin
  • The joists were housed into the side walls, rather than being hung from them.From the entry house
  • When he was a child he was rather heavy, but today he is impressively fit.From the entry heavy
  • He is wont to be rather quick of temper when tired.From the entry quick
  • She was rather cross about missing her train on the first day of the job.From the entry cross
  • Programs written in BASIC are usually run through an interpreter rather than a compiler.From the entry interpreter
  • It would be rather peculiar to see a kangaroo hopping down a city street.From the entry peculiar
  • He regards honesty as a duty, but was regarded himself as (being) rather dangerous by the police.From the entry regard

Meaning of rather

  1. adverb Used to specify a choice or preference; preferably, in preference to. (Now usually followed by than).
  2. adverb Used to introduce a contradiction; on the contrary.
  3. adverb Introducing a qualification or clarification; more precisely. (Now usually preceded by or.).

Full definition of rather

Questions about rather in a sentence

How do you use rather in a sentence?
Rather is used as an adverb, adjective and interjection. For example: “I'd rather not have spent all the money, but it really was an emergency.”
What is a short sentence with rather?
“"Oh, rather, sir.”
What does rather mean?
Rather means used to specify a choice or preference; preferably, in preference to. (Now usually followed by than).

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: rather (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this page: “How to use rather in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/rather. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.