前者(ぜんしゃ)は～後者(こうしゃ)はThe former ~ the latter, The first ~ the second

Structure

前者(ぜんしゃ)は + (Comment)
後者(こうしゃ)は + (Comment)　

Details

About 前者は・後者は

Used in almost exactly the same way as 'the former' and 'the latter' in English, 前者(ぜんしゃ) and 後者(こうしゃ) are two nouns that appear frequently in Japanese. The adverbial particle は will appear after these words, to express contrast between the two.

前者(ぜんしゃ) will be used for 'the former', while 後者(こうしゃ) will represent 'the latter'. Both 前者(ぜんしゃ) and 後者(こうしゃ) appear at the beginning of their own statements, with a specific comment about each being made after は.

Caution

Statements made that use 前者(ぜんしゃ) and 後者(こうしゃ) require some sort of relationship in what is being compared. Usually, this will be obvious within the context of the sentence, but is something that you will need to be careful of when making your own sentences.

Examples

--:--

ダンゴムシとワラジムシ、前者(ぜんしゃ)は触(さわ)ると丸(まる)まり、
後者(こうしゃ)は触(さわ)っても丸(まる)まらないという違(ちが)いがあります。

If you want to know the difference between pillbugs and sowbugs,
the former rolls into a ball if touched and the latter doesn't.

そうめんと冷麦(ひやむぎ)、前者(ぜんしゃ)は細(ほそ)く、後者(こうしゃ)は少(すこ)し太(ふと)い。

The difference between soumen and hiyamugi noodles is that
the former is thin and the latter is thick.

宿泊(しゅくはく)場所(ばしょ)の候補(こうほ)が二(ふた)つあります。
前者(ぜんしゃ)は温泉(おんせん)があり、後者(こうしゃ)はご飯(はん)がおいしいです。

There are two choices for places to stay.
The first has hot springs, the second has delicious food.

交通(こうつう)の札(ふだ)には切符(きっぷ)と整理券(せいりけん)の二(ふた)つがあります。前者(ぜんしゃ)は電車(でんしゃ)に乗(の)るために必要(ひつよう)なもので、後者(こうしゃ)はバスに乗(の)るときに取(と)るものです。

There are two types of transportation tickets: 'kippu' and 'seiriken'. The former is a thing needed for getting on a train, and the latter is taken when boarding on a bus.

どちらのパソコンがいいですか？前者(ぜんしゃ)は安(やす)いが性能(せいのう)は一般(いっぱん)向(む)け、後者(こうしゃ)は高(たか)いが高性能(こうせいのう)。

Which laptop is better? The former is cheap, but the specifications are average.
The latter is expensive, but has better performance.

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Online
- 前者
  Japanese Test 4 You
- 後者
  Japanese Test 4 You

Offline
- Tobira
  Page 214
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前者は・後者は – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (6 in total)

Pushindawood
the former・the latter
the first・the second
Structure
- Phrase including A and B +
  前者は (A attributes) + 後者は (B attributes)
View on Bunpro
seanblue
I think having both 前者 and 後者 as one grammar point is reasonable, but I don’t think including both in every sentence (or even most of them) is a good idea. This just makes it easier to guess the answer by seeing the other one given to you in the sentence.
Pushindawood
@seanblue You are quite right. We will need to get some new sentences written for this grammar point. In the meantime, I have removed the highlighting from whichever grammar point is not be tested to hopefully make it a little less obvious what is needed for an answer. Cheers.
ezhmd
mrnoone
Hey! Long time no see!

Sorry!
It was most likely a conversion error that got caught in the translation:

移動経路はこのように２つあります。
前者は電車に乗るもので、後者はバスに乗る必要があります。

I have fixed the sentence
Thank you for the feedback
Johnathan-Weir
Just a reminder about making those new sentences.

But also, it seems like a lot of the other grammar used seems pretty stiff and formal (like the literary conjunctive). Are these words only used in formal conversations and writing?
mrnoone
@Johnathan-Weir
Hey
後者は・前者は are normally formal written expressions that can also be used in casual conversation when needed.
Cheers