〜ほど〜ない: 'Not As ... As' in Japanese (N3 Grammar)
What it means
〜ほど〜ない is the standard way to make a "not as ... as" comparison. You set up two things, mark the benchmark with ほど, and finish with a negative predicate. The result says A falls short of B on some scale:
今日は昨日ほど寒くないです。
きょうは きのうほど さむくないです。
Today isn't as cold as yesterday.
ヤッタンはモチほど日本語が上手じゃない。
ヤッタンは モチほど にほんごが じょうずじゃない。
Yattan isn't as good at Japanese as Mochi.
ほど comes right after the benchmark (モチ), and the predicate is negative.
この映画は思ったほど面白くなかった。
この えいがは おもったほど おもしろくなかった。
This movie wasn't as interesting as I thought.
Here the benchmark is a clause: 思った (what I expected).
Notice the logic: the thing after ほど is the higher one. 「今日は昨日ほど寒くない」 means yesterday was the colder day, and today doesn't reach it.
How to form it
Attach ほど directly to the benchmark (a noun or a plain-form clause), then make the final predicate negative.
| Benchmark | Pattern | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | Noun + ほど + 〜ない | 弟は私ほど食べない (my brother doesn't eat as much as me) |
| い-adjective predicate | …ほど + Adj-くない | 昨日ほど寒くない |
| な-adj / noun predicate | …ほど + 〜じゃない | モチほど上手じゃない |
| Verb predicate | …ほど + Verb-ない | 思ったほど降らなかった |
| Clause benchmark | Plain clause + ほど | 期待したほど〜ない |
The two-part frame is A は B ほど … ない. A is the topic, B is the standard you're falling short of, and the sentence must end negatively for the "not as ... as" reading to work.
More examples
先生が言うほど難しくなかった。
せんせいが いうほど むずかしくなかった。
It wasn't as hard as the teacher said.
Clause benchmark 先生が言う = what the teacher claimed.
このカフェは前ほど人が多くない。
このカフェは まえほど ひとが おおくない。
This cafe isn't as crowded as before.
弟は思ったほど怒っていなかった。
おとうとは おもったほど おこって いなかった。
My little brother wasn't as angry as I'd thought.
A quick note on ほど for "extent"
Outside comparisons, ほど also marks a degree or extent — "to the point that," "so ~ that." You'll often meet it in vivid, exaggerated expressions:
昨日は死ぬほど疲れた。
きのうは しぬほど つかれた。
I was dead tired yesterday.
死ぬほど疲れた = literally 'tired to the point of dying.'
This is the same ほど, just used to show how much rather than to compare two items. (For the paired 〜ば〜ほど "the more ... the more" pattern, see 〜ば〜ほど.)
ほど〜ない vs より
These two are easy to mix up because both involve comparison, but they pull in opposite directions:
- より is for affirmative "more than" statements: 今日は昨日より寒い ("today is colder than yesterday"). The thing after より is the lower one.
- ほど〜ない is for negative "not as ... as": 今日は昨日ほど寒くない ("today isn't as cold as yesterday"). The thing after ほど is the higher one.
So 「AはBより〜」 and 「AはBほど〜ない」 can describe the same reality from opposite angles. 「B は A より寒い」("B is colder than A") and 「A は B ほど寒くない」("A isn't as cold as B") say the same thing. Use より with a positive predicate; switch to ほど〜ない when the predicate is negative. (For the basic comparative, review 〜より.)
Common mistakes
- Wrong word order. ほど must sit right after the benchmark, before the negative predicate: 私はヤッタンほど早く起きない (✓), not 私は早く起きないほどヤッタン (✗).
- Using より in a negative comparison. 「今日は昨日より寒くない」 sounds off; for "not as cold as," say 今日は昨日ほど寒くない.
- Forgetting the negative. ほど〜ない only means "not as ... as" when the predicate is negative. 「昨日ほど寒い」 (affirmative) does not mean "as cold as yesterday."
- Putting the higher item first. Remember the item after ほど is the bigger/stronger one: AはBほど〜ない means B outranks A.
Quick recap
- AはBほど〜ない = "A is not as ~ as B"; B is the higher standard.
- ほど attaches to a noun or a plain clause (思ったほど, 言うほど).
- The predicate must be negative — that's what creates the "not as ... as" meaning.
- Contrast with より (affirmative "more than"); ほど also shows extent (死ぬほど疲れた).
Your turn
Pick the correct 'not as ... as' comparison with ほど〜ない.
Start the 5-question drill →Take the full N3 〜ほど〜ない drill →
Frequently asked questions
What does AはBほど〜ない mean?
It means 'A is not as ~ as B.' B is the benchmark and the predicate is negative: 今日は昨日ほど寒くない = 'today isn't as cold as yesterday.' The item after ほど is the higher/stronger one.
Can ほど follow a verb or only a noun?
Both. ほど attaches to a noun (モチほど) or to a plain-form clause (思ったほど, 先生が言うほど). The clause states the expectation or claim you're measuring against.
How is ほど〜ない different from より?
より makes affirmative 'more than' statements (今日は昨日より寒い), with the lower item after より. ほど〜ない makes negative 'not as ... as' statements (今日は昨日ほど寒くない), with the higher item after ほど.
What does 死ぬほど疲れた mean?
Here ほど shows extent, not comparison: '(I was) tired to the point of dying' = dead tired. This 'to the point that' use of ほど is common in exaggerated expressions.