compare

[ kuhm-pair ]

See synonyms for: compare compared comparing on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object),com·pared, com·par·ing.

to examine (two or more objects, ideas, people, etc.) in order to note similarities and differences: to compare two pieces of cloth; to compare the governments of two nations.
to consider or describe as similar; liken: “Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?”

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

verb (used without object),com·pared, com·par·ing.

to be worthy of comparison; be held equal: Dekker's plays cannot compare with Shakespeare's.
to appear in a similar standing: His recital certainly compares with the one he gave last year.

to differ in quality or accomplishment as specified: Their development compares poorly with that of neighbor nations.
to vie; rival: Can we all agree that most people want fair treatment and to compare favorably with others?
to make a comparison: The only way we can say which product is better is to compare.

noun

comparison: Her beauty is beyond compare.

Idioms about compare

compare and contrast. See entry at compare and contrast.
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.

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.
compare notes. note (def. 32).

Origin of compare

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English comparen, from Latin comparāre “to place together, match,” verbal derivative of compar “alike, matching” (see com-, par¹); replacing Middle English comperen, from Old French comperer, from Latin

usage note For compare

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 words from compare

com·par·er, noun
in·ter·com·pare, verb (used with object), in·ter·com·pared, in·ter·com·par·ing.
pre·com·pare, verb (used with object), pre·com·pared, pre·com·par·ing.
re·com·pare, verb (used with object), re·com·pared, re·com·par·ing.
un·com·pared, adjective
well-com·pared, adjective

Words that may be confused with compare

compare , contrast

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use compare in a sentence

Compared with neighbors Myanmar, Vietnam, and Laos, Cambodia appears to have a blossoming civil society.
Cambodia’s Smoke-and-Mirrors Democracy | David Shaftel | January 9, 2015 | THE DAILY BEAST
Creating PGCs from skin tissue, on the other hand, seems like a walk in the park compared to egg freezing.
Men Will Someday Have Kids Without Women | Samantha Allen | January 3, 2015 | THE DAILY BEAST
In the week starting Dec. 22, arrests were down 66 percent compared to the same week in 2013.
Ground Zero of the NYPD Slowdown | Batya Ungar-Sargon | January 1, 2015 | THE DAILY BEAST
Egypt has a comparatively low number of HIV cases compared to the rest of Africa, with just 11,000 infected people nationwide.
Sisi Is Persecuting, Prosecuting, and Publicly Shaming Egypt’s Gays | Bel Trew | December 30, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
And in informal talks, Chinese leaders have compared hackers on both sides to unruly children who can only barely be controlled.
Obama Could Hit China to Punish North Korea | Shane Harris, Tim Mak | December 20, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST

It is ordinarily considered that the range of the speaking voice is very limited as compared with the singer's range.
Expressive Voice Culture | Jessie Eldridge Southwick
What are a few paltry, lumps of crystallised carbon compared to a galaxy of a million million suns?
God and my Neighbour | Robert Blatchford
The Pentegot is a very beautiful river, and may be compared to the Garonne in France.
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. II: Acadia, 1612-1614 | Various
This is an expression which indicates the amount of hemoglobin in each red corpuscle compared with the normal amount.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis | James Campbell Todd
It is interesting to note that some other articles of customary export showed large declines in 1915 as compared with 1914.
Readings in Money and Banking | Chester Arthur Phillips

British Dictionary definitions for compare

compare

/ (kəmˈpɛə) /

verb

(tr usually foll by to) to regard or represent as analogous or similar; liken: the general has been compared to Napoleon
(tr usually foll by with) to examine in order to observe resemblances or differences: to compare rum with gin

(intr usually foll by with) to be of the same or similar quality or value: gin compares with rum in alcoholic content
(intr) to bear a specified relation of quality or value when examined: this car compares badly with the other
(intr usually foll by with) to correspond to: profits were £3.2 million. This compares with £2.6 million last year
(tr) grammar to give the positive, comparative, and superlative forms of (an adjective)
(intr) archaic to compete or vie
compare notes to exchange opinions

noun

comparison or analogy (esp in the phrase beyond compare)

Origin of compare

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

Derived forms of compare

comparer, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with compare

compare

In addition to the idiom beginning with compare

compare notes

also see:

beyond compare

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