You know the difference between: "I would rather squash a bug <b>than</b> eat it". and... "I would rather squash a bug <b>then</b> eat it". So why don't you see the difference between: "He slipped up and said something <b>than</b> tried his best" and... "He slipped up and said something <b>then</b> tried his best" Again... as I said before, what does "...something <b>than</b> tried..." actually mean?