larger

Meanings

1. 1adjectivecomparable

   Greater in size, amount, or extent than something else; the comparative form of 'large'.

   Grammar: Used to compare two things, often followed by 'than': This room is larger than that one.

   Patterns

   • larger than something
   • a larger amount of something
   • grow larger
   • much/far larger

   This shirt is larger than the one I tried on yesterday.

   The company needs a larger office to fit all its employees.

   The problem is much larger than we first thought.

2. 2adjectivebefore a noun

   Used before a noun to mean a bigger version or amount of something.

   Grammar: Comes before the noun: a larger house, larger quantities.

   Patterns

   • a larger number of something
   • a larger share of something

   A larger number of people are working from home these days.

   She asked for a larger slice of cake.

Word forms

Common combinations

larger than

The new stadium is larger than the old one.

a larger amount

We need a larger amount of paint for the whole wall.

much larger

The universe is much larger than we can imagine.

grow larger

The crowd began to grow larger as the evening went on.

Synonyms and how they differ

bigger

More informal and common in speech; 'larger' is slightly more formal and often used with amounts.

greater

Used more for amounts or degrees than physical size; 'larger' is better for physical size.

Opposites

Word family

large adjective

Big in size or amount.

largely adverb

Mainly or mostly.

largest adjective

The superlative form of large.

Commonly confused: larger or bigger?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “larger”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Explore more words