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Consider the two sentences below:

> (1) 私の **`ほう`** が田中さん **`より`** よく飲む。(I drink more than Mr. Tanaka.)
>
> (2) 私はビール **`より`** 酒の **`ほう`** をよく飲む。(I drink more sake than beer.)

I think the pattern for the second one is a reverse of the first to put the
direct object in closer proximity to the verb so the sentence feels smoother.

EDIT: By "reverse" I meant "reverse of each other" as opposed to "reverse of
the "correct" construction". And I also learned that ほう precedes より by default
in sentences involving comparison except when there is a direct object marked
by を. (I may be wrong so please don't hesitate to correct me)

**(Question)** But if it is not a direct object, does it have any difference
in meaning or nuance?

i.e. Instead of (1), I change the sentence to:

> (1') 田中さん **より** 私の **ほう** がよく飲む。
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2011-08-11T15:49:17.813
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2011-08-12T04:19:36.527
2020-06-17T08:18:27.500
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question
nuances meaning clause-pattern
Reversing the clause pattern "～ほう～より"
Depending on whether you put の方 or より before, you emphasise on one or the
other. It's natural to say first the most important thing, so:

In (1) you are the topic of the sentence, _you_ are the one who drinks most.

In (1') Tanaka is the topic. As far as Kobayashi is concerned, no one knows.
But at least for now, what's important is that Tanaka drinks less than you,
and that's why you said より first.

In (2), it's often natural (in Japanese) to have your object not too far from
your verb. So you start by saying you're comparing (より), and then you have "I
drink" + near object "sake". By creating a (2'), you could have a nuance too
(as above), but I think that this order in (2) is the most natural for proper
communication.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2011-08-12T04:19:36.527
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2011-08-12T04:19:36.527
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answer