Comparison: English Vocabulary List

much better than others of the same type

"This hotel is a cut above the rest."

"This restaurant is a cut above the others in town because the ingredients are always fresh and the service is excellent."

used to describe someone or something that is far superior when compared to others of the same type

"She is head and shoulders above."

"In terms of technical skill, the new programmer is head and shoulders above all her colleagues."

a delicate distinction between two things, particularly two apparently similar situations or concepts

"There is a thin line between love and hate."

"There is a fine line between being confident and being arrogant so you must be very careful."

a situation in which things are being evaluated or considered in a fair manner

"We need to compare apples to apples."

"Comparing our small local shop to a huge international chain is not really an apples to apples comparison."

to possses qualities that are very similar to those of someone or something else's

"They are cut from the same cloth."

"The two brothers are cut from the same cloth, as they both share the same strong work ethic and values."

used to convey that someone is receiving much less credit or attention compared to a person more popular or skillful

"He lived in the shadow of his famous brother."

"The young actor always lived in the shadow of his famous father and struggled to be recognised for his own talent."

to try to do the exact same things as others did before one

"He wants to follow in father's footsteps."

"The daughter decided to follow in her mother's footsteps and became a doctor like her."

to behave in the same manner as someone else

"Others followed suit then."

"When one major supermarket lowered its prices the others quickly followed suit to stay competitive in the market."

to do something or to behave in a manner that is almost identical to that of someone else's

"Take a leaf from her."

"You should really take a leaf out of your sister's book when it comes to punctuality."

to take notice of someone else's action or behavior in an attempt to reach the same success

"I took a cue from her."

"The young politician took a cue from his mentor and delivered a passionate speech about helping the poor."

to be much less powerful, successful, or capable when compared to someone else

"He is half the man."

"After losing his confidence, he became half the man he used to be and struggled to lead the team."

(of a person or thing) greatly inferior to another person or thing

"This is not a patch."

"The new restaurant is not a patch on the old one, which had much better food and service."

used to refer to two individuals or entities that have the same qualities or having acquired the same achievements

"They are in same league."

"The young boxer is not in the same league as the champion and should not be fighting him."

used to suggest that that someone is not on the same level or does not possess the same social standing, attractiveness, or qualifications as another person

"She is out of my league."

"He knew that the beautiful model was out of his league but he still asked her out on a date anyway."

(of a person or thing) to be much faster, better, or more successful compared to someone or something else

"He runs rings around me."

"The experienced secretary ran circles around the new intern who had no idea how to use the office software."

used to suggest that that someone is not on the same level or does not possess the same social standing, attractiveness, or qualifications as another person

"He is out of my league."

"She felt that dating the famous actor was completely out of her league due to their social disparity."

used to compare two things based on their qualities or abilities, without considering their size or scale

"He is the best, pound for pound."

"The lightweight boxer was considered the champion, pound for pound, in his entire weight class."

a vast difference between two things, often indicating that they are significantly distant or dissimilar in terms of progress, quality, or understanding

"That is light years away."

"Achieving true artificial general intelligence still feels light years away from our current technological capabilities."