compare

[kuhm-pair]

verb (used with object)

compared, comparing 

1. to examine (two or more objects, ideas, people, etc.) in order to note similarities and differences.

   If you compare these three pieces of cloth, you'll see they're all similar in weight.

   It's difficult to directly compare the governments of two very different nations.

2. to consider or describe as similar; liken.

   “Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?”

3. Grammar.,  to form or display the degrees of comparison of (an adjective or adverb).

verb (used without object)

compared, comparing 

1. to be worthy of comparison; be held equal.

   Dekker's plays cannot compare with Shakespeare's.

2. to appear in a similar standing.

   His recital certainly compares with the one he gave last year.

3. to differ in quality or accomplishment as specified.

   Their development compares poorly with that of neighbor nations.

4. to vie; rival.

   Can we all agree that most people want fair treatment and to compare favorably with others?

5. to make a comparison.

   The only way we can say which product is better is to compare.

noun

1. comparison.

   Her beauty is beyond compare.

compare

/ kəmˈpɛə /

verb

1. to regard or represent as analogous or similar; liken

   the general has been compared to Napoleon

2. to examine in order to observe resemblances or differences

   to compare rum with gin

3. to be of the same or similar quality or value

   gin compares with rum in alcoholic content

4. (intr) to bear a specified relation of quality or value when examined

   this car compares badly with the other

5. to correspond to

   profits were £3.2 million. This compares with £2.6 million last year

6. (tr) grammar to give the positive, comparative, and superlative forms of (an adjective)

7. archaic,  (intr) to compete or vie

8. to exchange opinions

noun

1. comparison or analogy (esp in the phrase beyond compare )

Usage

The traditional rule about which preposition to use after compare states that compare should be followed by to when it points out likenesses or similarities between two apparently dissimilar persons or things: She compared his handwriting to knotted string. Compare should be followed by with, the rule says, when it points out similarities or differences between two entities of the same general class: The critic compared the paintings in the exhibit with magazine photographs. This rule is by no means always observed, however, even in formal speech and writing. The usual practice is to employ to for likenesses between members of different classes: A language may be compared to a living organism. But when the comparison is between members of the same category, both to and with are used: The article compares the Chicago of today with (or to ) the Chicago of the 1890s. Following the past participle compared, either to or with is used regardless of whether differences or similarities are stressed or whether the things compared belong to the same or different classes: Compared with (or to ) the streets of 18th-century London, New York's streets are models of cleanliness and order.

Other Word Forms

• comparer noun
• intercompare verb (used with object)
• precompare verb (used with object)
• recompare verb (used with object)
• uncompared adjective
• well-compared adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of compare¹

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English comparen, from Latin comparāre “to place together, match,” verb derivative of compar “alike, matching” ( com-, par ¹ ); replacing Middle English comperen, from Old French comperer, from Latin

Word History and Origins

Origin of compare¹

C15: from Old French comparer, from Latin comparāre to couple together, match, from compar equal to one another, from com- together + par equal; see _par

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. compare apples to / with / and apples, to compare things that are similar to each other in a basic or fundamental way.

   Let’s compare apples to apples and look at the Professional package versus the Plus package.

2. compare apples and / with / to oranges, to compare things that are fundamentally different from each other, usually used to suggest that the things cannot or should not be directly compared.

   Comparing per pupil costs in public schools to tuition costs in private schools is comparing apples and oranges.

3. compared to / with, considered in relation to; contrasted with.

   The report investigated whether electric buses were cost-effective compared to traditional diesel buses.

   Compared with other video editing software, our program offers many more features.

4. compare and contrast. compare and contrast.

5. compare notes. note.

More idioms and phrases containing compare

• beyond compare

Example Sentences

"Nitride MXenes play an important role in electrocatalysis, as shown through their improvement in performance compared to the widely studied carbide counterparts."

Read more on Science Daily

As another Redditor put it, “I wouldn’t try to compare powdered cheese to real cheese for taste.”

Read more on Salon

The company swung to a loss of 6 cents a share, compared to last year’s earnings of 5 cents a share.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Tellingly, global container volume growth is expected at 4% for full-year 2025, which looks relatively solid compared with what economists imagined could be the case in the first week of April.

Read more on MarketWatch

Employers said they cut more than a million jobs so far this year, a sharp rise in job losses compared with the same period last year, according to a new report released Thursday morning.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• analyze 
• contrast 
• correlate 
• equal 
• match 
• measure 
• study