What are two rules for comparison?
Entites that are compared should be
a. Grammatically parallel i.e. a noun should be compared with noun and an adjective with adjective
b. Logically parallel - They should make sense together
Observe the below sentence
To prepare for and respond to a disaster, emergency managers would have to know a great deal more than at present about the causes behind common disasters and measures to be taken for vulnerability reduction
- The sentence is incorrect because it compares two things that are not grammatically parallel i.e.
- managers would have to know a great deal (First is a verb/action)
- at present (Second is a prep. phrase)
To fix the sentence we should have a verb in second part and it should be of the order
- They do at present
To prepare for and respond to a disaster, emergency managers would have to know a great deal more than they do at present about the causes behind common disasters and measures to be taken for vulnerability reduction
Observe the below sentence
Wolves and dogs belong to the same species Canis Iupus but the wolf’s skull and jaws are larger and stronger than the dog
The comparison is illogical because we are comparing
- wolf’s skull and jaws (Part of an animal)
- Dog (Directly with an animal)
To fix this we can add a appostrophie to dog indicating that we are comparing two similar things
a. Wolves and dogs belong to the same species Canis Iupus but the wolf’s skull and jaws are larger and stronger than the dog’s
b. Wolves and dogs belong to the same species Canis Iupus but the wolf’s skull and jaws are larger and stronger than those of the dog
What are few comparison markers?
- Like
- Than
- As
- Compared with/to
- As (Some quality) as i.e. as much as , as many as etc.
- Different from etc.
Examples where words can be ommitted during comparison
- Mike’s reading speed is greater than his brother’s
- Mike loves playing football more than his brother
- Here using appostrophie (reading speed is implied with brother as well) [See it was noun and could be easily ommitted]
- The sentence can have two meaning, Mike loves playing football more than his brother or he loves playing football more than his brother does, because of ambiguity we cant omit words from this sentence and correct way to write it would be
Mike loves playing football more than his brother loves [Here we needed to repeat the verb]
What is the role of do/does in comparison?
GMAT allows usage of do/does to have comparison between actions
a. Mike loves playing football more than his brother loves
b. Mike loves playing football more than his brother does
The above two sentences are the same its just in second does is used instead of loves so does acts up as action pronoun
Note only use does to compare actions
Observe the below sentence
The works of the Italian sculptors are more identical to the works of the Greeks artists than the works of the French ones
This sentence can be understood in two ways
Italian sculptors works are more identical to the works of the Greeks artists than works of French sculptors are to Greeks artists i,e, Italian has more similarly with Greeks than French has to Greeks
Works of Italians are more close to Greek than Italian works to French
To fix this we can do two thing meaning of each would be different
a. The works of the Italian sculptors are more identical to the works of the Greeks artists than to the works of the French ones
Wth addition of “to” we have made the element parallel and now it is clear what is being compared
b. The works of the Italian sculptors are more identical to the works of the Greeks artists than to the works of the French one are
With addition of “are” we are again in clear what is being compared
What is the correct usage of comparison markers “Compared with/To”
- Compared to
- Compared with
- As compared to
- In comparison/contrast to
- In comparison/contrast with
Please not As compared with is not idiomatically correct usage
Observe the below sentence
- In the last 10 years, the population of India has grown by 150 million compared to the population of China, which has grown by 70 million
- In the last 10 years, the population of India has grown by 150 million when compared to the population of China, which has grown by 70 million
- In the last 10 years, the population of India has grown by 150 million as compared with the population of China, which has grown by 70 million
- The first usage is correct i.e. compared to
- The usage when compared to is incorrect
- The usage as compared with is incorrect
Can we use “compared” with comparative words such as “more” , “less”, “faster”, “larger”, “smaller”
No, we cannot use “compared” with these comparative markers but we should be using “than” with these words for e.g.
- The latest model produced by XYZ Corp. consumes less fuel than any other car in the world.
- The latest model produced by XYZ Corp. consumes less fuel compared to any other car in the world. - This construction is incorrect
How to use Like/Unlike?
Like/Unlike are used to compare nouns so they should be followed by either a noun or pronoun entity they cannot be followed by a clause
- Like the other students, Mike believes that the school should give more impetus to sports
Correct as we are comparing students with Mike
- Like the other students do, Mike believes that the school should give more impetus to sports
Incorrect as we have a clause so comparison becomes what other students believes in and what Mike belives in
Can a comparison using Like/Unlike contains modifiers/clauses?
Yes, we can have modifiers or clauses while comparing noun entities and the role of modifiers will just provide more info about the nouns being compared
- Like the other students in his class, Mike believes that the school should give more impetus to sports
We have prep phrase “in his class”
- Like the other students who study in his class, Mike believes that the school should give more impetus to sports
We have a modifier clause “who study in his class” even though seems like a verb is present in Like comparison the verb is part of the clause
How is “As” used in comparison structure?
As should always be followed by a clause and never by a noun/pronoun when used in comparison
As the other students, Mike believes that the school should give more impetus to sports
The above sentence is wrong as we have noun followed by as to fix it we should add a verb
As the other students do, Mike believes that the school should give more impetus to sports
Observe the below construction
As in the previous case, many politicians some outright dishonest and some barely honest, have come to the end of their careers this year
In this construction, it appears so that as is only followed by a prepositional phrase so usage of “As” is incorrect but do pay careful attention when we have a prepositional phrase, in this sentence “it was the case” is implied and omitted so the construction is correct
The learning is be careful when as is followed by prep phrase
What are uses of “As”
- Comparison - In this construction, it is followed by a clause
- Indicate another purpose i.e. to indicate role played in this construction as is followed by the noun e.g.
a. Mike was hired by XYZ as a researcher
Notice how we have “a researcher” a noun followed by “as”
b. As a doctor, Mike is responsible for the care and well being of all of his patients even if they are uncooperative
Notice how “As” is followed by the noun “a doctor”
- Present causality - In this usage “as” is used to provide the reason of why something happened
a. Mike was unable to attend the lecture as he was sick
Here we are not doing any comparing or using “as” to present a role, here “as” is providing causality
b. The latest government policy on land acquisition is meaningless as the policy hasn’t addressed the core problems faced by the realty sector
The function of “as” - Presents the reasons why the policy is considered meaningless
- Usage in context of time - In this construction “as” is used to show that two actions happen at the same time
a. Mike saw her friends sitting at the front as he boarded the bus
