Comparative Meaning

/kəmˈpæɹətɪv/
B2

Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.

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adjOf or relating to comparison.

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

Once divorced from key questions of national culture and identity, comparative literature loses its way.
After many hardships, he now lives in comparative ease.
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
CEFR Practice Quiz
She wrote a ____ analysis of the two economic systems for her thesis.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
We conducted a deep ____ analysis of the two competing economic systems.

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ḱe? Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm Proto-Italic *kom Proto-Italic *kom- Latin con- Latin pār Latin compār Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti Proto-Italic *-āō Latin -ō Latin comparō Proto-Indo-European *-wós Proto-Indo-European *-iHwósder. Latin īvus Latin comparātīvusbor. Old French comparatifbor. Middle English comparatif English comparative From Middle English comparatif, from Middle French comparatif, from Latin comparātīvus, equivalent to comparātus, from comparāre (“to compare”) + -ive, from Latin -īvus.

"that kind of animals that have the comparative faculty, by which they compare things together, deliberate and resolve." — 1773, James Burnett, Of the Origin and Progress of Language:
"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." — 1960 December, “Talking of Trains: The riding of B.R. coaches”, in Trains Illustrated, pages 705–706:
"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." — 2016 October 24, Owen Gibson, “Is the unthinkable happening – are people finally switching the football off?”, in The Guardian, London:
"The recurrence of comparative warmth and cold." — 1837, William Whewell, History of the Inductive Sciences:
"This bubble, […] by reason of its comparative levity to the fluid that encloses it, would necessarily ascend to the top." — 1692, Richard Bentley, A Confutation of Atheism:

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CEFR Practice Quiz
She wrote a ____ analysis of the two economic systems for her thesis.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
We conducted a deep ____ analysis of the two competing economic systems.

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