neko yori inu no hou ga suki desu.

I like dogs more than cats.

Breakdown of neko yori inu no hou ga suki desu.

• 犬いぬ: dog
• です: to be
• 猫ねこ: cat
• が: subject particle
• 好すき: like
• の: possessive case particle
• A より B ほう が C: B is more C than A

Questions & Answers about neko yori inu no hou ga suki desu.

What is the role of より in 猫より犬のほうが好きです?

より marks the item you like less in a comparison. It corresponds to English “than.” Here, 猫より means “than cats.”

What does のほうが mean in this sentence?

Literally, ほう means “direction” or “side,” and の links 犬 to ほう, forming “the dog side.” Together, 犬のほうが indicates that dogs are the preferred side in the comparison.

Why isn’t there は or が after 猫?

In the Xより Yのほうが pattern, より itself attaches to X to show the comparison standard. You don’t need another particle like は or が on 猫 here—it’s built into the structure.

Why is there a の between 犬 and ほう? Isn’t の possessive?

Here の isn’t possessive but a linker that turns 犬 into a modifier for ほう (similar to 学生の本, “student’s book”). It simply connects the noun to ほう.

Can I say 犬が猫より好きです instead?

Yes, 犬が猫より好きです is grammatical and means the same. However, the Xより Yのほうが form is more natural and balanced in most spoken contexts.

Why isn’t 私は used at the beginning?

Japanese often omits obvious subjects. The speaker (“I”) is understood from context. If you want to emphasize I, you can say 私は猫より犬のほうが好きです.

How strong is this preference? Is it a light or strong statement?

It’s a neutral statement of preference. To strengthen it, add an adverb or use a stronger adjective, e.g. 猫より犬のほうがずっと好きです (“I like dogs much more than cats”) or 大好き instead of 好き.

Can I use this より…のほうが structure with other adjectives?

Absolutely. You can compare any adjective:
• 夏より冬のほうが寒いです (“Winter is colder than summer”)
• 映画より本のほうがおもしろいです (“Books are more interesting than movies”)

Why does the sentence end with です? Could I use だ instead?

です makes the sentence polite. In casual speech you can drop it or replace it with だ:
猫より犬のほうが好きだ.