comparative1 adjectivecomparative2 noun
comparativecom‧par‧a‧tive1 /kəmˈpærətɪv/ ●○○ adjective 
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- During the bombings, families sheltered in the comparative safety of the underground rail stations.
- Fresh fruit and vegetables have become a comparative rarity in the region.
- Comparative figures Prior year comparative figures have been restated to conform to the current year's presentation where appropriate.
- Coming from a few rooms in Creek Lane, the Sisters may have wondered at the comparative spaciousness of their new surroundings.
- Finally, Chapter 8 examines the comparative work on democratic institutions and democratic performance.
- For comparative purposes, the team also took a similar set of readings on human walkers.
- He was ridden down before he could reach the comparative safety of his parsonage at Yateley.
- The comparative weight of the evidence is, however, peculiarly the function of the trial judge who has heard the witnesses.
- The former agent did a comparative analysis of the manifesto and five pages of letters and essays authored by Theodore.
- Therefore they shed light on the comparative institutional questions with which we are concerned.
Longman Language Activatorwhen one thing is being compared with another
· The British are good drivers compared to those in the rest of the EU.· Statistics show that there has been a 20% reduction in burglary compared with last year.· Women visit their doctors six times a year compared to the three or so visits that men make.
as shown when compared with another situation, idea, person etc: · My car is so slow that it makes a bicycle look fast in comparison.in comparison/by comparison with: · We employ far fewer staff in comparison with similar-sized companies.pale in/by comparison (=to look worse or much less important in comparison): · Forecasters say this year's drought could make that of 1991 pale by comparison.· The Yankees' problems pale by comparison with those of the Dodgers.
use this to talk about the difference between the things, situations, people etc that you are comparing: · I read a lot as a child, but my daughter, by contrast, just seems interested in television.in contrast to: · In contrast to the hot days, the nights are bitterly cold.
use this to say that something seems more or less impressive, important etc when compared to something else: · Tom's efforts seemed so weak beside Martin's.· Delhi is so old that many European cities actually look young beside it.
use this when you are comparing two pieces of information, facts, etc in order to show how they are different: · Last year there were 443 industrial accidents as against 257 in 1985.· With only 57 inhabitants per square mile, as against a world average of over 70, the country is far from overcrowded.
use this to say that something does not seem correct, suitable, impressive etc compared with the things that surround it: · Ricky's head is small in proportion to the rest of his body.· I've always thought that my problems were very minor in proportion to those of many other people.
having a particular quality when compared with something else: · Kim lived a life of relative ease and privilege.relative strength/weakness: · the relative strength of the dollar against the Mexican pesorelative advantages (and disadvantages): · She was terrified of flying. The relative advantages of air travel didn't tempt her at all.relative merits (=what is good about them compared with each other): · The two men stood at the bar discussing the relative merits of various sports cars.it is all relative (=it can not be judged on its own, but must be compared with others): · It's all relative, isn't it? Someone who is poor in this country might be considered well off in another.
: comparative happiness/comfort/safety etc happiness, comfort, safety etc that is fairly satisfactory when compared to another: · After a lifetime of poverty, his last few years were spent in comparative comfort.· Fresh fruit and vegetables have become a comparative rarity in the region.· During the bombings, families sheltered in the comparative safety of the underground rail stations.
: more/less/bigger etc than · Geographically, Canada is bigger than the US.· My sister earns a lot more than I do.
WORD SETSabbr., abbreviate, verbabbreviation, nounabstract noun, nounaccusative, nounactive, adjectiveadj., adjective, nounadv., adverb, nounadverbial, adjectiveaffix, nounantecedent, nounapposition, nounarticle, nounaspect, nounattributive, adjectiveaux., auxiliary, nounauxiliary verb, nouncase, nouncausal, adjectiveclause, nouncollective noun, nouncommon noun, nouncomparative, adjectivecomparison, nouncomplement, nouncomplex, adjectivecompound, nounconcord, nounconcrete noun, nounconditional, adjectiveconditional, nounconj., conjugate, verbconjugation, nounconjunction, nounconnective, nounconstruction, nouncontinuous, adjectivecontraction, nouncoordinate, adjectivecoordinating conjunction, nouncopula, nouncountable, adjectivecount noun, noundative, noundeclension, noundefinite article, noundemonstrative, adjectivedemonstrative pronoun, noundependent clause, noundeterminer, noundirect discourse, noundirect object, noundirect speech, noundisjunctive, adjectiveditransitive, adjectivedouble negative, noun-ed, suffixending, noun-est, suffix-eth, suffixfeminine, adjectivefinite, adjectiveform, nounfunction word, nounfuture, adjectivegender, noungenitive, noungerund, noungradable, adjectivegrammar, noungrammarian, noungrammatical, adjectivehistoric present, nounhomonym, nounhomophone, nounimperative, adjectiveimperative, nounimpersonal, adjectiveindefinite article, nounindependent clause, nounindicative, nounindicative, adjectiveindirect discourse, nounindirect object, nounindirect speech, nouninfinitive, nouninflect, verbinflected, adjectiveinflection, noun-ing, suffixintensifier, nouninterjection, nouninterrogative, adjectiveinterrogative, nounintransitive, adjectivelinking verb, nounmain clause, nounmasculine, adjectivemodal, nounmodal auxiliary, nounmodal verb, nounmodifier, nounmodify, verbmood, nounn., neuter, adjectivenominal, adjectivenominative, nounnon-finite, adjectivenon-restrictive, adjectivenoun, nounnumber, nounobject, nounparse, verbparticipial, adjectiveparticiple, nounparticle, nounpartitive, nounpart of speech, nounpassive, adjectivepassivize, verbpast, adjectivepast participle, nounpast perfect, nounperfect participle, nounperiphrasis, nounpersonal pronoun, nounphrasal verb, nounphrase, nounpl., plural, nounplural, adjectiveplurality, nounpossessive, adjectivepossessive, nounpredeterminer, nounpredicate, nounpredicative, adjectiveprefix, nounprefix, verbprep., preposition, nounprepositional phrase, nounpres., present participle, nounprogressive, adjectivepronominal, adjectivepronoun, nounproper noun, nounpunctuate, verbpunctuation, nounqualifier, nounquantifier, nounquestion tag, nounreflexive, adjectiveregular, adjectiverelative clause, nounrelative pronoun, nounreported speech, nounrestrictive clause, nounroot, nounrule, nounrun-on sentence, nounsecond person, nounsemicolon, nounsentence, nounsentence adverb, nounsingular, adjectivesolecism, nounsplit infinitive, nounstative, adjectivestem, nounsubject, nounsubjective, adjectivesubjunctive, nounsubordinate clause, nounsubstantive, nounsuffix, nounsuperlative, adjectivesyntactic, adjectivesyntax, nountag, nountense, nountransitive, adjectiveuncountable, adjectivev., variant, nounverb, nounverbal, adjectivevocative, noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY
She didn’t want to leave the comparative safety of the shelter.COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
She didn’t want to leave the comparative safety of the shelter. (=seeming easy, especially considering how difficult something is)· Most modern laptops can store large amounts of data with comparative ease.
· There is a relative lack of research into this medical condition.
(=comfortable when compared to other things)· We were glad to return to the comparative luxury of our tent away from the rain.
(=the good qualities of something as compared to something else)· She is an expert in the relative merits of spa waters.
(=not known about compared to other things that are better known)· He brought the team from relative obscurity to fame.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSNOUN· Given the existence of resource mobility in a single country, the exploitation of comparative advantage is possible.· The classical theory of comparative advantage is often taught as if everyone benefits from trade.· A trend had already been set in textiles, where the comparative advantage of cheap labour was becoming important.· The alternative case where free entry restores standard comparative advantage is when factor endowments are sufficiently similar to permit factor price equalization.· In Figure 2.1 the case of reaping comparative advantage is examined.· In the classical theory of comparative advantage, there is no role for government in determining the location of industry.· However, this solution prevents the group achieving any gains from assigning people to tasks according to their comparative advantage.· In the nineteenth and for most of the twentieth century, the theory of comparative advantage explained what needed to be explained.
· Nevertheless an independent review emerged with a comparative analysis of a complex field.· The former agent did a comparative analysis of the manifesto and five pages of letters and essays authored by Theodore.· It may be possible to apply all of these to groups who contrast in some way, so facilitating a comparative analysis.· Their comparative analysis tests the linear and non-linear forms of the relationship between income inequality and political violence.· Thus detailed comparative analysis of different religions is possible.· A comparative analysis of course documents made the extent and systematic nature of the changes quite evident.· This makes any comparative analysis of data recorded at different times or using different aggregation units problematical.· Cases are those countries that feature in the comparative analysis.
· As well as medical preparations, it contained a great deal of comparative anatomy, including fossils.· Works on comparative anatomy continued this tradition, though by the nineteenth century there was more caution about using mankind.· Owen was also put in charge of the College's museum, an important source of specimens for comparative anatomy.· But the early debates were conducted almost entirely in terms of comparative anatomy and paleontology.
· Despite the above advantages, the comparative approach may be said to have three main failings.· Because of our comparative approach, we must regretfully bypass interesting problems within the individual countries.· Helminth communities of amphibians and reptiles: comparative approaches to understanding patters and processes - John M Aho.· A comparative approach will identify marketing factors which distinguish successful companies from less successful ones.· The comparative approach allows two major tasks to be carried out.· The comparative approach, like economic analysis, has both strengths and weaknesses.
· Does my hon. Friend know the comparative costs involved?· Price them and prepare a table to show comparative costs. 3.· Has his party analysed those comparative costs?· The basis for international trade between countries can be explained in terms of the economist David Ricardo's theory of comparative costs.· First, it is possible that a too narrow definition of comparative costs would be used.· Economic evaluation and the calculation of comparative costs per quality-adjusted life-year gained is one way of providing such an explanation.
· Significance levels for comparative data were determined by the Wilcoxon signed rank test.· The most reliable of these comparative data measure voting in national elections.· Rather few comparative data are available from which to assess recent status changes, but these appear to have been marked.· This earlier project provides a comparative data base which will be used in assessing the impact of new guidelines.
· We stripped a combination of primer and varnish from a plywood screen with comparative ease.· Her life, comparative ease from the cradle up; she had to thank her father.· Gooch was 57, Stewart 38, and the new-ball attack had been weathered with comparative ease.· He is following a correspondence course in gardening for adults with comparative ease.
· I do not want the comparative figures to be distorted.· Whichever option societies take, comparative figures for the new disclosures will be required.· Comparative figures Prior year comparative figures have been restated to conform to the current year's presentation where appropriate.· Inspection of the comparative figures is both instructive and startling.· The comparative figures for 1991 were 25 and 19 respectively.· The presentation of comparative figures has been adjusted to reflect the new standard.· Where changes in presentation are made, appropriate adjustments are made to comparative figures.
· I enjoyed this comparative freedom and spent a lot of time pacing around the cell.· The comparative freedom that the close presence of grandparents afforded wives contributed significantly to the high standard of farming seen.
· My comparative lack of basic talent came home to me on the practice ground before the first round of the Amateur.
· Historians have approached these areas, as have social scientists, anthropologists, psychiatrists, and some students of comparative literature.· An excellent article on selection bias using real examples from the comparative literature.· Throughout the chapters, concrete examples from the comparative literature were used to demonstrate these points.· The repeated empirical verification of the relationship, however, leads to two conclusions in the comparative literature.
· The comparative method is not really a term referring to a fixed procedure that is to be followed rigidly.· This study stands as one of the earliest and most comprehensive analyses of this research question using this particular comparative method.· They were especially interested in Darwin's use of the comparative method.· The details of the comparative method are a little sketchy, but she claims that Melanesian practice is very similar.· The comparative method discloses a number of key issues which any legislation guaranteeing equal employment rights for disabled workers must address.· In sum, the different comparative methods should be seen as complements to one another.· An excellent review of comparative methods.
· Briefing box 1.1 Making classifications: Aristotle and Finer Description and classification are the building blocks of comparative politics.· All three countries represent a state of affairs that defies predominant theories in comparative politics.· The discussion now turns to key examples from comparative politics that have examined these important questions.· This book provides a good discussion of establishing functional equivalence in comparative politics.· What then are the main conclusions about comparative politics that can be drawn from this cursory comparison to natural science?· The comparative politics literature is rich with examples of these different levels of analysis.· The fourth section summarizes these reasons, justifications, and terms for a science of comparative politics.· Third, a large portion of published literature in comparative politics uses quantitative analysis.
· For comparative purposes, the team also took a similar set of readings on human walkers.· Thus for comparative purposes the Category B gas-coal scenario should be used.· The Theogonist's leadership value is not therefore used, but has been included for comparative purposes.· For comparative purposes, Charles Barkley made $ 4. 1 million in salary and $ 3 million in endorsements last year.· As demonstrated, a percentage perannum return can be calculated for comparative purposes with other types of financial investment.· This outline is especially pertinent for comparative purposes.· Should a leadership value ever be required for comparative purposes then use the value as 10.
· The second is to encourage the study of comparative religion, philosophy and science.· You study the history of religions, comparative religion, the scriptures of the world, maybe the psychology of religion.· He buried himself in books on comparative religion, and began publishing scholarly tracts and books about the goddess.· Students of comparative religion, on the other hand, have evidenced somewhat more interest in tongue speaking.
· All have considerable experience of international comparative research.· These questions are especially germane in comparative research, where the analyst attempts to specify how the structure-function patterns vary between states.· Aside from these two ` laws' of political science, the bulk of comparative research eschews making such strong claims.· The Bureau's comparative research programme comprises a continuing analysis of model properties and forecast performance.· Notes 1 A corollary branch of comparative research inverts the relationship to examine whether democracies achieve better levels of economic development.
· He was ridden down before he could reach the comparative safety of his parsonage at Yateley.· I saluted him and then made my way back to the farmyard and the comparative safety of the farm buildings.· Forster slithered to Delaney and got a grip, pulling him back to comparative safety.· New ideas can be bounced around in the comparative safety of the governors' meeting and reactions gauged.· Had she locked herself in a place of comparative safety?· From a place of comparative safety she was able to observe as Joe pushed his way onward, unaware of her move.· She shivered, and was glad to gain the comparative safety of the open area in the centre.· Just as they reached the top and comparative safety, Lilley yelled for everyone to bale out.
· Purely descriptive studies serve as the raw data for those comparative studies that aspire to higher levels of explanation.· She said a comparative study of about 15, 000 randomly selected Gulf War veterans is planned for the near future.· The generality of conclusions from well controlled experiments can often be tested by comparative studies.· All the topics covered would have to be placed in context but there would be no, say, comparative studies.· Overall, the statistical results confirm the relationship between economic development and democracy established by the comparative studies in the earlier phase.· There are many important questions which emerge in relation to comparative study which employs place or locality as the frame of reference and explanation.· Space and resources preclude an exhaustive or even an extensive comparative study in this work.
· We've done lots of comparative work, case-control studies ... soc: Oh dear!· Finally, Chapter 8 examines the comparative work on democratic institutions and democratic performance.
PHRASES FROM THE ENTRY
- I enjoyed this comparative freedom and spent a lot of time pacing around the cell.
- The comparative freedom that the close presence of grandparents afforded wives contributed significantly to the high standard of farming seen.
- All the topics covered would have to be placed in context but there would be no, say, comparative studies.
- Other recent examples of comparative studies are those of Lowe - independent study modules and lecture tours, in 1981.
- She said a comparative study of about 15, 000 randomly selected Gulf War veterans is planned for the near future.
- Space and resources preclude an exhaustive or even an extensive comparative study in this work.
- The comparative study of institutions is not new in political science.
- The comparative study of kinship terminologies is one of the longest established traditions in academic anthropology.
- Thus, the comparative analysis of achievable stopping patterns by bus, light rail and suburban rail is well done.
- A word of advice - don't sit for hours at the knitting machine, particularly if you are a comparative beginner.
- The fishing and fish-processing industry in North Shields is a comparative newcomer.
- Comparative figures Prior year comparative figures have been restated to conform to the current year's presentation where appropriate.
- I do not want the comparative figures to be distorted.
- Inspection of the comparative figures is both instructive and startling.
- Significance levels for comparative data were determined by the Wilcoxon signed rank test.
- The comparative figures for 1991 were 25 and 19 respectively.
- The comparative figures one year later of 14% and 10.9% are still worrying.
- The most reliable of these comparative data measure voting in national elections.
- Whichever option societies take, comparative figures for the new disclosures will be required.
WORD FAMILYnouncomparisoncomparabilitythe comparativeadjectivecomparable ≠ incomparablecomparativeadverbcomparativelycomparablyverbcompare
1 comparative comfort/freedom/wealth etc comfort, freedom, wealth etc that is quite good when compared to how comfortable, free, or rich etc something or someone else is SYN relative: After a lifetime of poverty, his last few years were spent in comparative comfort. She didn’t want to leave the comparative safety of the shelter.2comparative study/analysis etc a study etc that involves comparing something to something else: a comparative study of the US and British steel industries3comparative beginner/newcomer etc someone who is not really a beginner etc, but who seems to be one when compared to other people who have lived or worked somewhere for a long time: After living here five years, we’re still considered comparative newcomers.4comparative figures/data comparative figures etc are similar to other figures, so that you can make a comparison: Comparative figures for last year clearly show how sales have declined.5 technical the comparative form of an adjective or adverb shows an increase in size, quality, degree etc when it is considered in relation to something else. For example, ‘bigger’ is the comparative form of ‘big’, and ‘more slowly’ is the comparative form of ‘slowly’.comparative1 adjectivecomparative2 noun
comparativecomparative2 noun the comparative technical the form of an adjective or adverb that shows an increase in size, degree etc when something is considered in relation to something else. For example, ‘bigger’ is the comparative of ‘big’, and ‘more slowly’ is the comparative of ‘slowly’.