ほとんど・殆ど・殆んど・幾どhotondo[2]nakadaka (mid-high)

1. adverbalmost; nearly; mostly; practically; virtually; basically; just about; all but
   夕食ゆうしょくの準備じゅんびはほとんどできています。↗

   The dinner is almost ready.
2. adverbhardly; barely; scarcely; littlewith neg. verb
   ケイトは中国語ちゅうごくごをほとんど話はなせない。↗

   Kate can hardly speak Chinese.
3. no-adjectivelarge majority; large proportion; greater part; most (of); almost all (of)
   彼女かのじょは人生じんせいのほとんどを貧まずしい人々ひとびとの世話せわをするために費ついやした。↗

   She spent most of her life taking care of poor people.

• SynonymおよそWrittenWritten/formal prose; means 'about', usually with quantities, as in 「およそ百人」. 「ほとんど」 stresses being close to all.
• Synonym大方おおかたNeutralMeans 'mostly' or 'the greater part', and can also express conjecture, as in 「おおかたそうだろう」.
• SynonymたいていNeutralMeans 'usually, in most cases', stressing frequency, as in 「たいてい家にいる」.
• Synonym大半たいはんNeutralMeans 'the greater part, well over half', as in 「大半の人」; often interchangeable with 「ほとんど」.
• Synonym大部分だいぶぶんNeutralMeans 'the greater part', stressing proportion, as in 「大部分が賛成」.
• Synonym大多数だいたすうNeutralMeans 'the vast majority', as in 「大多数の意見」, with emphasis on the number of people.
• Synonym大概たいがいNeutralMeans 'mostly, most', and appears in 「大概にしろ」, telling someone not to go too far.
• Synonym九分通りくぶどおりNeutralMeans 'about ninety percent (done)' and 'almost certainly', as in 「九分通り完成」.
• SynonymあらかたWrittenWritten/formal prose; means 'roughly, almost all', as in 「あらかた片付いた」.
• RelatedざっとCasualColloquial; means 'roughly, approximately', as in 「ざっと見積もる」.
• RelatedおおよそWrittenWritten-leaning; means 'about, roughly', stressing estimated figures, as in 「おおよその見当」.

Use 「ほとんど」 by default for 'almost all'. Pick 「およそ」 for approximate numbers, 「大半」 or 「大部分」 for the greater part, 「たいてい」 for high frequency, and 「ざっと」 for rough estimates. 「大半」 often replaces 「ほとんど」; 「大部分」 stresses proportion and 「大多数」 headcount.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. 完全かんぜんにではないが、それに近ちかい程度ていどに。
2. 全部ぜんぶではないが、それに近ちかい数かずや量りょう。
3. もう少すこしで。あやうく。
4. 全部ぜんぶではないが、それに近ちかい数かずの人ひとや物もの。