Difference between くらいなら ～ のほうがましだ and くらいなら ～ ほうがいい


Both expressions seem to be related to show a strong opposition to do
something by rather doing something else. But what is the difference between
them ?

Additional question: both seem to express speaker point of view. Can we use
those structures to express other feelings ?




I assume that you already know the difference between いい and ましだ in isolation,
and focus on the difference in the structures:

> (A) XするくらいならYする/したほうがいい  
>  (B) XするくらいならYする/したほうがましだ

As you wrote, both (A) and (B) mean that doing Y is better than doing X
although both are bad, and this is often used as a statement of how bad doing
X is. But I think that I feel a few differences in nuance between (A) and (B).

First, simpler parts:

  * (B) is less formal than (A) because ましだ is a little colloquial word.
  * (B) puts more emphasis on the badness of the two options than (A). This is because ましだ already means “less bad” (better but still bad) even without the ～するくらいなら part.

But I think that there is another difference. I will try to explain it
although I still have difficulty getting hold of it.

While both (A) and (B) can be just a statement of a fact or an opinion, (A)
can also be a suggestion for the listener to do Y. I will use nomithekid’s
examples:

> (1A) そんな仕事をするくらいなら、会社をやめたほうがいい。  
>  (1B) そんな仕事をするくらいなら、会社をやめたほうがましだ。

(1A) can be either:

  * a mere statement of the speaker’s opinion about how bad the job is, or
  * a suggestion for the listener to quit the company, given that the alternative is doing that bad job.

I think that (1B) is interpreted only as a statement and not a suggestion.




I assume that you already know the difference between いい and ましだ in isolation,
and focus on the difference in the structures:

> (A) XするくらいならYする/したほうがいい  
>  (B) XするくらいならYする/したほうがましだ

As you wrote, both (A) and (B) mean that doing Y is better than doing X
although both are bad, and this is often used as a statement of how bad doing
X is. But I think that I feel a few differences in nuance between (A) and (B).

First, simpler parts:

  * (B) is less formal than (A) because ましだ is a little colloquial word.
  * (B) puts more emphasis on the badness of the two options than (A). This is because ましだ already means “less bad” (better but still bad) even without the ～するくらいなら part.

But I think that there is another difference. I will try to explain it
although I still have difficulty getting hold of it.

While both (A) and (B) can be just a statement of a fact or an opinion, (A)
can also be a suggestion for the listener to do Y. I will use nomithekid’s
examples:

> (1A) そんな仕事をするくらいなら、会社をやめたほうがいい。  
>  (1B) そんな仕事をするくらいなら、会社をやめたほうがましだ。

(1A) can be either:

  * a mere statement of the speaker’s opinion about how bad the job is, or
  * a suggestion for the listener to quit the company, given that the alternative is doing that bad job.

I think that (1B) is interpreted only as a statement and not a suggestion.

