Meaning & use
control group
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Meaning
nouncountable
In an experiment, the group of people or things that does not get the treatment being tested, used for comparison.
Grammar: Countable; often used with 'the' or 'a'.
Patterns
- the control group
- a control group
- compared with the control group
The control group received a harmless pill with no medicine in it.
Researchers compared the results of the treated group with the control group.
Half of the patients were in the control group and received no treatment.
Word forms
| plural | control groups |
|---|
Common combinations
- receive a placebo
- The control group received a placebo, while the other group got the real drug.
- compare with the control group
- Scientists compared the new drug's effects with those in the control group.
- assign to the control group
- Participants were randomly assigned to the control group.
- the control group showed
- The control group showed no improvement during the study.
Synonyms and how they differ
- comparison group
- A broader term that can include any group used for comparison, not only one that receives no treatment.
- baseline group
- Focuses on the starting level rather than the absence of treatment; used more in observational studies.
Opposites
Word family
- controlled experiment noun
- An experiment in which all factors except the one being tested are kept the same.
Commonly confused: control group or experimental group?
control group vs experimental group
The experimental group receives the treatment, while the control group does not; they are often compared.
Practice
In a drug trial, the control group is the group that ____.
Choose one answer.
The control group does not receive the treatment being tested, so it can be compared with the treated group. Receiving the new drug describes the experimental group, not the control group.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “control group”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.