comparative English · revision 39704

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1447, O. Bokenham, Lyvys of Seyntys|origins=la comparō}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * UK: /kəmˈpæɹətɪv/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|la|comparātīvus|t=of or relating to comparison]],^(OED 2026)^(Klein 1966)^(SOED 2002)^(MWU 2024) formed on [[m|la|comparātus]], the past participle of [[m|la|comparō|t=to compare, liken, pair, match]], with the suffix [[m|la|-īvus]] ([[-ive]]).^(OED 2026)^(Dictionary.com 2016)^(MWU 2024)^(ODE 2010) Etymonline takes it through [[m|fro|comparatif]],^(Etymonline) and the OED compares the French word.^(OED 2026) Etymonline notes that Old English had rendered the Latin term with the loan translation [[m|ang|wiþmetendlic]].^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ In grammar, the form of an adjective or adverb that expresses a higher degree of a quality: 1447, in Osbern Bokenham's ''Lyvys of Seyntys''.^(OED 2026) Etymonline dates the word to the mid 15th century and notes that it was at first a grammatical term, applied to forms such as ''greater'' and ''stronger''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The general sense "estimated by comparison, relative" is recorded from 1597, in Francis Bacon,^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline) and "of or involving comparison" from 1602.^(OED 2026) From 1675, in a title by Nehemiah Grew, it named studies that compare several branches of a subject, as in ''comparative anatomy'' and ''comparative philology''.^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline) From 1774 it often implied only a moderate or imperfect degree, as in ''comparative comfort''.^(OED 2026) Shakespeare used it twice in ''Henry IV, Part 1'' (1598) in a humorous sense, quick at making comparisons, as adjective and noun.^(OED 2026) The noun meant a rival or equal from c1470 to 1625,^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024) and has been the grammatical term for the comparative degree since 1530, in Palsgrave.^(OED 2026) Johnson (1755) gave "estimated by comparison; not positive; not absolute".^(Johnson 1755)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1447 – (grammar) expressing a higher degree.^(OED 2026)

+ * c1470 – noun, a rival or equal (obsolete).^(OED 2026)

+ * 1530 – noun, the comparative degree.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1597 – estimated by comparison, relative.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1598 – quick at comparisons, in Shakespeare.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1602 – of or involving comparison.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1675 – of a study comparing branches of a subject.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1774 – moderate, in a lesser degree than usual.^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Involving or based on [[comparison]]: ''a comparative study of two rural schools''.^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)^(OED 2026)

+ # Measured or judged by comparison with something else; [[relative]]: ''After the storm the harbour was in comparative calm.''^(Collins 2023)^(OED 2026)

+ # (grammar) Of the form of an adjective or adverb that expresses a greater degree, such as ''taller'' or ''more slowly''.^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)^(OED 2026)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # (grammar) The comparative degree, or an adjective or adverb in it.^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[comparatively]]

+ * [[comparativeness]]

+ * [[comparatist]]

+ * [[comparativist]]

+ * [[comparative linguistics]]

+ * [[comparative literature]]

+ * [[comparative method]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[compare]]

+ * [[comparison]]

+ * [[comparable]]

+ * [[superlative]]

+ * [[positive]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}