comparison
noun
Simple meaning
Relation based on similarities and differences.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
kuhmpehruhsuhnSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
kəmˈpɛɹəsən
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
Relation based on similarities and differences
An evaluation of the similarities and differences of one or more things relative to some other or each other.
The act of comparing or the state or process of being compared.
That to which, or with which, a thing is compared, as being equal or like; illustration; similitude.
With a negation, the state of being similar or alike.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A2 · Elementary
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Relation based on similarities and differences
Used this way, comparison is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use comparison
- “They made a comparison of noise levels.”noun
- “No comparison between the two books.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
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Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
Compare prices for a given item.
The kind of mental comparison that is expressed in similes or metaphors or allegories.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.