Word of the Day: Compare
A person compares the qualities of two things or two groups of things. Comparing almost always involves the number two; however, sometimes you will hear the word “compare” used when discussing the qualities of more than two things.
- Tom compared two schools and chose the one that was closer to his house.
- Compared to other cities in the United States, New York is actually very safe and livable.
- Rhonda always compares prices among the stores she visits to buy groceries.
- Those two places don’t even compare. (One is clearly much better than the other.)
- Compared to gold jewelry, silver jewelry is much cheaper.
- Compared to a cat, a dog is much friendlier and easier to train.
Sometimes when using the word “compare,” a person suggests that there are some similarities.
- Lisa compares her father to a dictator. She says they both enforce strict rules.
- Henry was compared unfavorably to a dog.
- Someone in our class compared the teacher to a large rock.
- Valerie is so beautiful. She is often compared to Jennifer Lopez.
The word “comparison” is a noun.
- That’s a very good comparison.
- The comparison made between the two novels was very helpful for the students.
- Comparison shopping is essential if you are a careful shopper. (comparison shopping = visiting more than one store to compare prices and quality)
The word “comparative” is an adjective:
- The word “better” is a comparative adjective and a comparative adverb for the word “good.”
- Some countries in Europe have a comparative advantage over other European countries because they have stronger productivity.
Essential English Dictionary
Visit the Popular English Words Beginning with C page to see the list of all words starting with letter C. For seeing the HiCafe dictionary, visit the Popular English Words with Meaning page.
