comparison

[ kuhm-par-uh-suhn ]
See synonyms for: comparisoncomparisons on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. the act of comparing.

  2. the state of being compared.

  1. a likening; illustration by similitude; comparative estimate or statement.

  2. Rhetoric. the considering of two things with regard to some characteristic that is common to both, as the likening of a hero to a lion in courage.

  3. capability of being compared or likened.

  4. Grammar.

    • the function of an adverb or adjective that is used to indicate degrees of superiority or inferiority in quality, quantity, or intensity.

    • the patterns of formation involved therein.

    • the degrees of a particular word, displayed in a fixed order, as mild, milder, mildest, less mild, least mild.

Origin of comparison

1
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English comparesoun, from Old French comparaison, from Latin comparātiōn-, stem of comparātiō, from comparāt(us) “placed together” (past participle of comparāre “to place together, match”; see compare) + -iō -ion

Other words for comparison

Other words from comparison

  • in·ter·com·par·i·son, noun
  • pre·com·par·i·son, noun
  • re·com·par·i·son, noun

Words Nearby comparison

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use comparison in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for comparison

comparison

/ (kəmˈpærɪsən) /


noun
  1. the act or process of comparing

  2. the state of being compared

  1. comparable quality or qualities; likeness: there was no comparison between them

  2. a rhetorical device involving comparison, such as a simile

  3. Also called: degrees of comparison grammar the listing of the positive, comparative, and superlative forms of an adjective or adverb

  4. bear comparison or stand comparison to be sufficiently similar in class or range to be compared with (something else), esp favourably

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