to pale in comparison
22
5.3
- phrasal verb
:
palidecer en comparación con
- But in reality, that still would pale in comparison to what's happening.
- figures pale in comparison
- however, pale in comparison
Have goals so big that your problems pale in comparison.
- Have goals so big that your problems pale in comparison.
- The idea that the rest of your life is going to pale in comparison to the experience that you had.
- The price you will pay to get your dream pales in comparison to the price you will pay if you don't get your dream.
- And you know, when you place that in the context of the fact that we're all going to die, those things start to pale in comparison.
- But I felt like it would the First off, it would pale in comparison to the examples in the book, right?
- Now that needs to pale in comparison to the amount of time that you reward yourself and you need to earn that reward.
Examples
-
The price you will pay to get your dream pales in comparison to the price you will pay if you don't get your dream.
-
Whatever rancor it caused in the short term, he said, would pale in comparison to the payoff that would follow.
Academic text (2003) -
The idea that the rest of your life is going to pale in comparison to the experience that you had.
-
Some huge guests in this kitchen, but they all pale in comparison to who is about to walk through those doors.
-
You will at some point look back on this and it will pale in comparison to what you experience later on.
-
That would pale in comparison to the actual experience.
-
But it pales in comparison to what came following.
-
As destructive as diabetes is, it pales in comparison to heart disease.
-
Of course, these people pale in comparison to the seriousness of his candidacy, right?
-
The beauty of the sunset pales in comparison to the breathtaking view from the mountain top.
Synonyms
1
6.1
Too small to be important
Antonyms
584
3.4
Causing people to admire it, like a building or performance, because it is very good
How Impressive
588
2.8
584
3.4
112
3.7
22
5.3
20
3.5
Surface Forms
Morphology
pale + in + comparison
The phrase combines 'pale' (weak, unimpressive) with the comparative frame 'in comparison', so a learner who knows the constituent meanings can infer that something seems less impressive when set against something else. This is a straightforward, cross-linguistically common metaphorical extension and follows standard compositional patterns, making it readily comprehensible to a B1 learner.
Etymology
The phrase pale in comparison comes from the simple picture of one thing looking faded next to something much brighter, like a small candle that looks pale next to the sun. That's why when something 'pales in comparison' it seems 'less impressive' or 'not as good' next to something better.