mallon marks a greater degree, often intensifying an action or setting one response above another.

The attested uses chiefly mark a preferred alternative or contrast, as one action, allegiance, or outcome is set above another. They also intensify a quantity, action, or quality, including comparative conclusions expressed as “how much more.”

1. Preference or alternative set above another · dominant

   The adverb marks a choice or contrast in which one response is put ahead of another. In 1 Corinthians 5:2 the APB renders the needed response as mourning “rather” than pride; in Acts 5:29 it contrasts obeying God with men, and in Ephesians 4:28 it turns from stealing to laboring and sharing.

   1 Corinthians 5:2Acts 5:29Ephesians 4:282 Corinthians 5:8Hebrews 11:25John 3:19
2. Greater degree or increased intensity · common

   The adverb heightens the degree of an action, state, or quantity. In 1 Corinthians 14:18 the APB renders speaking in tongues “more than all of you”; in 1 Thessalonians 4:10 the brothers are urged to abound “more,” and in Luke 18:39 the rebuked man cries out “all the more.”

   1 Corinthians 14:181 Thessalonians 4:102 Corinthians 12:9Acts 5:14Luke 18:39Luke 5:15
3. Stronger comparative conclusion · occasional

   In comparative arguments, the adverb strengthens what follows from a stated comparison. In Hebrews 9:14 the APB renders the conclusion “how much more” concerning cleansing, while Luke 12:28 moves from God clothing grass to the stronger expectation that he will clothe the hearers.

   2 Corinthians 3:82 Corinthians 3:9Hebrews 9:14Hebrews 12:9Luke 11:13Luke 12:28

In the Anselm Project Bible: The APB variously presents the adverb with “rather,” “more,” “all the more,” “still more,” and “how much more.” These renderings show the verses’ comparative force rather than establishing a separate English equivalent in every clause.