comparative

English

Etymology

From Middle English comparatif, from Middle French comparatif, from Latin comparātīvus, equivalent to comparātus, from comparāre (“to compare”) + -ive, from Latin -īvus.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /kəmˈpæɹ.ə.tɪv/
• (General American) enPR: kəmʹpăr-ə-tĭv
  • (without the Mary–marry–merry merger) IPA^(key): /kəmˈpæɹ.ə.tɪv/
  • (Mary–marry–merry merger) IPA^(key): /kəmˈpɛɹ.ə.tɪv/

• Audio (New England, without the Mary–marry–merry merger):

  (file)

• Audio (US, Mary–marry–merry merger):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: com‧par‧a‧tive

Adjective

comparative (comparative more comparative, superlative most comparative)

1. Of or relating to comparison.
   • 1773, James Burnett, Of the Origin and Progress of Language:

     that kind of animals that have the comparative faculty, by which they compare things together, deliberate and resolve

   (Can we add an example for this sense?)

2. Using comparison as a method of study, or founded on something using it.

   comparative anatomy

   • 1960 December, “Talking of Trains: The riding of B.R. coaches”, in Trains Illustrated, pages 705–706:

     After all, it is undeniable that the B.R. standard coach scored highly in comparative trials with other European railway vehicles on the Continent a few years ago, so that B.R. civil engineers must share responsibility for any defects in its behaviour over here.

3. Approximated by comparison; relative.
   • 2016 October 24, Owen Gibson, “Is the unthinkable happening – are people finally switching the football off?”, in The Guardian‎^[1], London:

     The Olympics, the weather and a comparative lack of heavyweight clashes so far this season have been cited as reasons for the drop in viewers.

   • 1837, William Whewell, History of the Inductive Sciences:

     The recurrence of comparative warmth and cold.

   • 1692, Richard Bentley, A Confutation of Atheism:

     This bubble, […] by reason of its comparative levity to the fluid that encloses it, would necessarily ascend to the top.

4. (obsolete) Comparable; bearing comparison.
   • 1819, Lord Byron, Don Juan, II.137:

     And need he had of slumber yet, for none / Had suffered more—his hardships were comparative / To those related in my grand-dad's Narrative.

Derived terms

• comparatist
• comparatively
• comparativeness
• comparativism
• comparativist
• comparativistic
• macrocomparative
• noncomparative

 

Multiword terms

• comparative advantage
• comparative anatomy
• comparative case
• comparative degree
• comparative ethics
• comparative illusion
• comparative linguist
• comparative linguistics
• comparative literature
• comparative method
• comparative superlative

 

Translations

of or relating to comparison

• Armenian: համեմատական (hy) (hamematakan)
• Azerbaijani: müqayisəli
• Belarusian: параўна́льны (paraŭnálʹny)
• Bulgarian: сравни́телен (bg) (sravnítelen)
• Catalan: comparatiu
• Czech: srovnávací
• Danish: komparativ (da), sammenlignende
• Dutch: vergelijkend (nl)
• Finnish: verrannollinen (fi), vertaileva (fi)
• French: comparatif (fr) m
• Galician: comparativo (gl)
• German: vergleichend (de)
• Greek: συγκριτικός (el) (sygkritikós)

  Ancient: συγκριτικός (sunkritikós)

• Indonesian: komparatif (id), perbandingan (id)
• Irish: comparáideach
• Italian: comparativo (it) m
• Macedonian: споредбен (sporedben)
• Norman: compathatif (Jersey)
• Norwegian: komparativ (no)
• Persian: تفضیلی (fa), تطبیقی (fa)
• Polish: porównawczy (pl)
• Portuguese: comparativo (pt)
• Romanian: comparativ (ro)
• Russian: сравни́тельный (ru) (sravnítelʹnyj)
• Slovak: porovnávací
• Slovene: primerjalen
• Spanish: comparativo (es)
• Tagalog: hambingin
• Ukrainian: порівня́льний (porivnjálʹnyj)

using comparison as a method of study

• Armenian: համեմատական (hy) (hamematakan)
• Azerbaijani: müqayisəli, müqayisəvi
• Bengali: তুলনামূলক (bn) (tulnamulok)
• Bulgarian: сравни́телен (bg) (sravnítelen)
• Catalan: comparatiu
• Danish: komparativ (da)
• Finnish: vertaileva (fi)
• French: comparatif (fr) m
• German: komparativ (de)
• Greek: συγκριτικός (el) (sygkritikós)
• Hungarian: összehasonlító (hu), komparatív (hu)
• Irish: comparáideach
• Italian: comparativo (it) m
• Norman: compathatif (Jersey)
• Portuguese: comparativo (pt)
• Romanian: comparativ (ro) m
• Russian: сравни́тельный (ru) (sravnítelʹnyj)
• Slovak: komparatívny
• Spanish: comparativo (es)
• Swedish: jämförande (sv), komparativ (sv)
• Tagalog: hambingin
• Uzbek: qiyosiy (uz)

relative

• Bulgarian: относи́телен (bg) (otnosítelen)
• Finnish: suhteellinen (fi), verrannollinen (fi)
• German: verhältnismäßig (de), relativ (de)
• Italian: comparativo (it)
• Russian: относи́тельный (ru) (otnosítelʹnyj)
• Slovak: relatívny, pomerný
• Spanish: comparativo (es)
• Welsh: cymharol (cy)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Old English: ^{(please verify)} wiþmetenlic, ^{(please verify)} wiþmetendlic

Noun

comparative (plural comparatives)

1. (grammar) A construction showing a relative quality, in English usually formed by adding more or appending -er. For example, the comparative of green is greener; of evil, more evil.
2. (grammar) A word in the comparative form.
3. (chiefly in the plural) Data used to make a comparison.
   • 2010, Barry Smith, Introductory Financial Accounting and Reporting, page 171:

     Investment ratios are positive. Comparative or trend data are required to draw final conclusions. The absence of comparatives and trend data constrains the conclusions.

4. (obsolete) An equal; a rival; a compeer.
   • c. 1608–1613, Nathan Field, John Fletcher, “Four Playes, or Morall Representations, in One”, in Comedies and Tragedies […], London: […] Humphrey Robinson, […], and for Humphrey Moseley […], published 1647, →OCLC, Act , (please specify the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals):

     Gerrard ever was / His full comparative.

5. (obsolete) One who makes comparisons; one who affects wit.
   • c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii], line 67:

     Every beardless vain comparative.

Synonyms

• (grammar: degree): comparative degree

Translations

grammatical construction

• Albanian: shkalla krahasore f
• Arabic: دَرَجَة نِسْبِيَّة f (daraja(t) nisbiyya)
• Belarusian: вышэ́йшая ступе́нь f (vyšéjšaja stupjénʹ), параўна́льная ступе́нь f (paraŭnálʹnaja stupjénʹ)
• Breton: derez-uheloc'h (br) m
• Bulgarian: сравни́телна сте́пен f (sravnítelna stépen)
• Catalan: comparatiu m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 比較級／比较级 (zh) (bǐjiàojí)

• Czech: druhý stupeň m, komparativ (cs) m
• Dutch: vergrotende trap (nl), vergelijkende trap (nl)
• Estonian: keskvõrre, komparatiiv (et)
• Faroese: miðstig n
• Finnish: komparatiivi (fi), vertailumuoto
• French: comparatif (fr) m
• German: Höherstufe (de) f, Mehrstufe (de) f, Komparativ (de) m
• Greek: συγκριτικός (el) m (sygkritikós)

  Ancient: συγκριτικόν n (sunkritikón)

• Hungarian: középfok (hu)
• Icelandic: miðstig (is) n
• Indonesian: pelebihan
• Ingrian: rinnoitussteeppeni, komparativa
• Irish: breischéim f
• Italian: comparativo (it) m
• Japanese: 比較級 (ja) (ひかくきゅう, hikakukyū)
• Korean: 비교급(比較級) (ko) (bigyogeup)
• Latin: gradus comparativus, comparativus, collatio secunda
• Lithuanian: aukštesnysis laipsnis (lt) m
• Norman: compathatif m
• Old English: wiþmetendlīċ
• Persian: صفت برتر (fa) (sefat-e bartar)
• Polish: stopień wyższy (pl) m inan
• Portuguese: grau comparativo m, comparativo (pt) m
• Russian: сравни́тельная сте́пень (ru) f (sravnítelʹnaja stépenʹ), компарати́в (ru) m (komparatív)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: ко̏мпаратӣв m

  Roman: kȍmparatīv (sh) m

• Slovak: komparatív, druhý stupeň
• Slovene: primérnik m
• Spanish: comparativo (es) m
• Swedish: komparativ (sv) c
• Tagalog: pahambing
• Ukrainian: ви́щий сту́пінь m (výščyj stúpinʹ)
• Vietnamese: cấp so sánh
• Welsh: gradd gymharol f

word in comparative form

• Catalan: comparatiu m
• Czech: komparativ (cs) m
• French: comparatif (fr) m
• German: Komparativ (de) m
• Greek: συγκριτικός (el) m (sygkritikós)
• Indonesian: pembanding (id)
• Italian: comparativo (it)
• Norman: compathatif m
• Norwegian: komparativ (no)
• Persian: صفت برتر (fa) (sefat-e bartar)
• Polish: stopień wyższy (pl) m inan
• Portuguese: comparativo (pt) m
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: ко̏мпаратӣв m

  Roman: kȍmparatīv (sh) m

• Slovak: komparatív
• Spanish: comparativo (es) m
• Swedish: komparativ (sv) n
• Vietnamese: cấp so sánh

Related terms

• absolute comparative
• degrees of comparison
• superlative

See also

• absolute superlative, relative superlative, comparative superlative
• contrastive

References

• “comparative”, in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th edition, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin, 2000, →ISBN.
• “comparative”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
• "comparative" in WordNet 2.0, Princeton University, 2003.

Anagrams

• vampire taco

French

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Adjective

comparative

1. feminine singular of comparatif

Italian

Adjective

comparative

1. feminine plural of comparativo

Anagrams

• comparivate, crepitavamo, imporcavate

Latin

Adjective

comparātīve

1. vocative masculine singular of comparātīvus

References

• “comparative”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press