contrast

[ verb kuhn-trast, kon-trast; noun kon-trast ]

verb (used with object)

1. to compare in order to show unlikeness or differences; note the opposite natures, purposes, etc., of:

   Contrast the political rights of Romans and Greeks.

   Synonyms: oppose, distinguish, discriminate, differentiate

verb (used without object)

1. to show striking difference when compared with or viewed alongside something else:

   Youth leadership on the issue contrasts with government inaction.

   The blue of the wood trim contrasts nicely with the pale yellow walls.

2. Linguistics. to differ in a way that can serve to distinguish meanings:

   The sounds (p) and (b) contrast in the words “pin” and “bin.”

noun

1. a striking difference:

   The study revealed interesting contrasts between people who regularly read books and those who don't.

2. a person or thing that is strikingly different in comparison:

   The weather down here is a welcome contrast to what we're having back home.

3. opposition or juxtaposition of different formal elements in a work of art, music, or literature to intensify each element's properties and make the work more dynamically expressive:

   The artist makes effective use of color contrast in the illustrations.

   There’s a stark contrast of tempo in the sonata’s two movements.

4. the act of comparing people or things so as to draw attention to striking differences between them:

   Each essay topic involves the contrast of two of the novels studied in the course.

5. Photography. the relative difference between light and dark areas of a print, digital photograph, or negative.
6. the brightness ratio of the lightest to the darkest part of the screen image on a television, computer, or other electronic device.
7. Linguistics. a difference between linguistic elements, especially sounds, that can serve to distinguish meanings.

contrast

verb

1. often foll by with to distinguish or be distinguished by comparison of unlike or opposite qualities

noun

1. distinction or emphasis of difference by comparison of opposite or dissimilar things, qualities, etc (esp in the phrases by contrast, in contrast to or with )
2. a person or thing showing notable differences when compared with another
3. (in painting) the effect of the juxtaposition of different colours, tones, etc
4. 1. (of a photographic emulsion) the degree of density measured against exposure used
   2. the extent to which adjacent areas of an optical image, esp on a television screen or in a photographic negative or print, differ in brightness
5. psychol the phenomenon that when two different but related stimuli are presented close together in space and/or time they are perceived as being more different than they really are

Derived Forms

• conˈtrastive, adjective
• conˈtrastable, adjective
• conˈtrasting, adjective
• conˈtrastably, adverb
• conˈtrastively, adverb

Other Words From

• con·trast·a·ble adjective
• con·trast·a·bly adverb
• con·trast·ing·ly adverb
• qua·si-con·trast·ed adjective
• un·con·trast·a·ble adjective
• un·con·trast·a·bly adverb
• un·con·trast·ed adjective
• un·con·trast·ing adjective
• well-con·trast·ed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of contrast¹

First recorded in 1480–90; (for the verb) from Middle French contraster, from Italian contrastare “to contest,” from Latin contrā- contra- ¹( def ) + stāre “to stand” ( status ); (for the noun) earlier contraste, from French, from Italian contrasto “conflict,” derivative of contrastare

Word History and Origins

Origin of contrast¹

C16: (n): via French from Italian, from contrastare (vb), from Latin contra- against + stare to stand

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. in contrast, in comparison to something that is the opposite or strikingly different in some respect:

   In contrast to personal computers, which are rare in that country, cell phones are widely available and even most children have their own.

2. stand in contrast to / with, to show a striking difference when compared to or with:

   The actor’s on-screen gun violence stands in contrast to her real-life persona as an advocate for gun control.

3. by contrast. by contrast.
4. compare and contrast. compare and contrast.

Example Sentences

By contrast, no song from SSA has ever hit the 300 million mark.

From Ozy

Inhibited children, in contrast, avoided chances to make friends in new situations and to stand out academically or socially in school.

From Science News

By contrast, the “deoptimized” coronavirus has several hundred genetic changes.

From MIT Technology Review

In contrast, Biden did not travel Tuesday to South Florida, where there are signs he is struggling with the Cuban American community.

From Washington Post

By contrast, our death rate is roughly 58 per 100,000 Americans, more than five times Germany’s per capita toll.

From ProPublica

“After the New York mentality, it is the ultimate contrast to see people making things by hand,” he said.

From The Daily Beast

In contrast, Boehner's leadership team filed into his ceremonial office and greeted the teary newly-elected Speaker with hugs.

From The Daily Beast

By contrast, John McCain, the eventual GOP nominee, had raised approximately $12.7 million in the first quarter of 2007 alone.

From The Daily Beast

In contrast to Paul, Huckabee has never palled around with Al Sharpton.

From The Daily Beast

By contrast, a gun will allow a pilot to attack hostile forces that are less than 300 feet from friendly ground forces.

From The Daily Beast

But the contrast thus presented is one that has acquired a new meaning in the age in which we live.

From Project Gutenberg

In contrast to the Widal, it begins to fade about the end of the second week, and soon thereafter entirely disappears.

From Project Gutenberg

This contrast implies a great wrong somewhere, and for which somebody must be responsible.

From Project Gutenberg

The contrast between the open street and the enclosed stuffiness of the dim and crowded interior was overwhelming.

From Project Gutenberg

His life had been the strangest contrast to the calm countenance which I saw so tranquilly listen to its own tale.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• comparison
• contradiction
• disagreement
• disparity
• distinction
• divergence
• diversity
• opposition
• variation