In the sentence “The earth is larger than the moon”, than is:

(A) Subordinating Conjunction

(B) Coordinating Conjunct

(C) Not a conjunction

(D) Both (A) & (B)

In the sentence “The earth is larger than the moon”, “than” is:

(A) Subordinating Conjunction

Here’s why:

• Subordinating conjunctions connect clauses and introduce a dependent clause. The clause following “than” (“the moon is smaller”) depends on the main clause (“The earth is larger”) for its complete meaning.
• Coordinating conjunctions connect clauses of equal grammatical rank. In this sentence, there’s no equal ranking between the two clauses. “The moon is smaller” is implied but not explicitly stated, making it dependent on the main clause.
• Not a conjunction: “Than” clearly connects clauses, making it a conjunction.
• Both (A) & (B): “Than” is not a coordinating conjunction in this case