''Rather than vs over''

Question

''Over'' meaning in longmann dictionary

Preferring: if you choose one thing over another , you choose that thing rather than the other.

EX:

What is your main reason for choosing one restaurant over another?

**Can I make this sentence with ''Rather than'' in the same meaning with ''Over'' ?

What is your main reason for choosing one restaurant rather than another?

''Rather Than'' definition

We use rather than to give more importance to one thing when two alternatives or preferences are being compared:

EX:

He wanted to be an actor rather than a comedian.

Can we come over on Saturday rather than Friday?

Can I make these sentences with ''over'' in the same meaning with ''Rather than''?

He wanted to be an actor over a comedian.

Can we come over on Saturday over Friday?

Answer 1

Yes, use rather than.

These two examples do not seem correct to this native UK English speaker.

He wanted to be an actor over a comedian.

Can we come over on Saturday over Friday?

This usage of over seems acceptable:

I would choose Brand X over Brand Y

The difference being that we are explicitly using the word choose

In my own work I would use

I would choose Brand X rather than Brand Y

I would choose Brand X in preference to Brand Y

Generally, I would use rather than or in preference to instead of over (or indeed use instead of). This may be a matter of personal preference, but for me the word over has so many meanings that the chance of ambiguity or clumsiness due to repetition is too great.

For example look at the two uses of over in the same sentence in your example:

Can we come over on Saturday over Friday?