Difference between 例如 And 比如说

[pprendeville]

Is there a difference between the 2 of these?

[Demonic_Duck]

I believe 例如 is more formal, and 比如说 is mostly used colloquially. You also see 如 used on its own sometimes, at least in written text. Then there's also 比如 (I think that's fairly informal, but perhaps not as colloquial as 比如说). Correct me if I'm wrong about any of this.

[tooironic]

比如/比如说 and 譬如/譬如说 are 口语 (colloquial).

例如 is 书面语 (written language).

You also hear 打个比方... ("for instance...") and 拿...来说 ("take... for example") in conversation.

[lingo-ling]

My co-worker says 好比說 a lot.

[陳德聰]

好比说 is a lot more like "就像说"

[tooironic]

Agreed. 好比说, 就想说 and 这好比 all mean "this is like..."

[WestTexas]

Don't forget 打个比方.

Edit: Oh, you did list that one.