C1adjective2K

Comparable

UK /["/ˈkɒmpərəbl/"]/US /["/ˈkɑːmpərəbl/"]/

Definition

similar to somebody/something else and able to be compared

In simple words: Able to be compared to something else.

Examples

  • A comparable house in the south of the city would cost twice as much.
  • The situation in the US is not directly comparable to that in the UK.
  • Inflation is now at a rate comparable with that in other European countries.
  • The two machines are comparable in size.
  • Its brain is closely comparable to the brain of a chimpanzee.
  • No other country at that time had an organized public opinion remotely comparable to Britain's.
  • The earthquake was comparable with others in recent years.
  • The regional variation in Australian accent is not in any way comparable to that found in the UK or US.
  • There are no other scanners even remotely comparable to this in terms of quality of image produced.
  • a job comparable to mine

Usage notes

Use 'comparable' when discussing similarities between two items. It is more neutral than 'superior' or 'inferior', and avoids informal usage. Avoid using it in casual conversations where simpler words like 'similar' could suffice.

Grammar pattern

comparable + to/with + object

Memory hint

Think of 'compare' — if two things are alike, they're comparable.

Collocations

  • be
  • become
  • closely
  • quite
  • very
  • in
  • to
  • with
  • something comparable (to something)
  • there is nothing comparable (to something)

Synonyms

  • similar
  • analogous
  • equivalent
  • alike
  • matching

Antonyms

  • incomparable
  • unequal
  • dissimilar

Common mistakes

  • Confused with 'comparative' which refers to a grammatical degree.
  • Using 'comparable' without a 'to' or 'with', which is incorrect.
  • Omitting 'to' when making comparisons.