in comparison with

Meanings

1. 1phrasefixed phrase

   Used to show how one thing is different when you look at it next to another thing.

   Grammar: Comes before the second thing: in comparison with last year. It often follows a clause about the first thing.

   Patterns

   • in comparison with something
   • something is small/large in comparison with something

   Our sales this month are weak in comparison with last month.

   In comparison with her sister, she is very quiet.

   The new phone is expensive in comparison with the older model.

2. 2phrasefixed phrase

   Used to introduce a difference that seems surprising when two things are placed side by side.

   Grammar: Often at the start of a sentence, followed by a comma: In comparison with the coast, the inland area is dry.

   Patterns

   • In comparison with something, ...

   In comparison with the coast, the inland area gets very little rain.

   In comparison with other teams, ours trains much harder.

Common combinations

small in comparison with

Their budget is small in comparison with ours.

cheap in comparison with

These tickets are cheap in comparison with the ones we bought last year.

in comparison with the past

Prices have fallen in comparison with the past.

perform well in comparison with

The students performed well in comparison with other schools.

Synonyms and how they differ

compared with

Almost the same meaning, but a little shorter and more common in everyday speech.

next to

More informal; it can suggest a surprising difference, as in 'Next to her, I look short.'

relative to

More formal and technical, common in business and science writing.

Commonly confused: in comparison with or in contrast with?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “in comparison with”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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