Contrast
['kɒntrɑːst] or ['kɑntræst]
Definition
(noun.) the act of distinguishing by comparing differences.
(noun.) the range of optical density and tone on a photographic negative or print (or the extent to which adjacent areas on a television screen differ in brightness).
(noun.) the perceptual effect of the juxtaposition of very different colors.
(noun.) the opposition or dissimilarity of things that are compared; 'in contrast to', 'by contrast'.
(verb.) put in opposition to show or emphasize differences; 'The middle school teacher contrasted her best student's work with that of her weakest student'.
(verb.) to show differences when compared; be different; 'the students contrast considerably in their artistic abilities'.
Edited by Daniel--From WordNet
Definition
(v. i.) To stand in opposition; to exhibit difference, unlikeness, or opposition of qualities.
(v. t.) To set in opposition, or over against, in order to show the differences between, or the comparative excellences and defects of; to compare by difference or contrariety of qualities; as, to contrast the present with the past.
(v. t.) To give greater effect to, as to a figure or other object, by putting it in some relation of opposition to another figure or object.
(n.) The act of contrasting, or the state of being contrasted; comparison by contrariety of qualities.
(n.) Opposition or dissimilitude of things or qualities; unlikeness, esp. as shown by juxtaposition or comparison.
(n.) The opposition of varied forms, colors, etc., which by such juxtaposition more vividly express each other's peculiarities.
Typist: Norton
Synonyms and Synonymous
n. [1]. Exhibition of differences.[2]. Opposition, difference.
v. a. Set off by opposition, exhibit the differences of.
v. n. Show difference, exhibit a contrast.
Checker: Monroe
Synonyms and Antonyms
SYN:Opposition, contrariety, dissimilarity
ANT:Harmony, similarity, comparison, similitude
Editor: Nell
Definition
v.i. to stand in opposition to.—v.t. to set in opposition in order to show superiority or give effect.—n. Con′trast opposition or unlikeness in things compared: exhibition of differences.—adj. Contrast′ive.
Inputed by Inez
Examples
- It is well watered, and its affluent vegetation gains effect by contrast with the barren hills that tower on either side. Mark Twain. The Innocents Abroad.
- And very white he looked, in contrast with the roses. Charles Dickens. Hard Times.
- Then her thoughts went back to Milton, with a strange sense of the contrast between the life there, and here. Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell. North and South.
- Nothing could exceed in beauty the contrast between these two excellent creatures. Mary Shelley. Frankenstein_Or_The Modern Prometheus.
- The coffee was so exquisite that he asked for a second cup: such a contrast to the watery stuff at the club! Edith Wharton. The House of Mirth.
- Dine with the Lord Mayor of London (if you can get an invitation) and observe the contrast. Charles Dickens. Little Dorrit.
- His figure seemed very tall as he entered, and stood in contrast with the three ladies, none of whom could boast a stature much beyond the average. Charlotte Bronte. Shirley.
- The multiplicity of its appeals--the perpetual surprise of its contrasts and resemblances! Edith Wharton. The House of Mirth.
- A contrast indeed to this gay scene of worldly pleasure--but then I have always lived on contrasts! Edith Wharton. The Age of Innocence.
- Her visit to the Girls' Club had first brought her in contact with the dramatic contrasts of life. Edith Wharton. The House of Mirth.
- With some excess of patriotic pride, he contrasts these with what he calls the seven wonders of American invention. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- He closes his picture with a rollicking burst of humor which contrasts finely with the grief of the mother and her children. Mark Twain. The Innocents Abroad.
- Her lord being cherubic, she was necessarily majestic, according to the principle which matrimonially unites contrasts. Charles Dickens. Our Mutual Friend.
- I made you talk: ere long I found you full of strange contrasts. Charlotte Bronte. Jane Eyre.
- Observe their three heads: much alike at a first glance; at a second, different; at a third, contrasted. Charlotte Bronte. Shirley.
- India, a galaxy of contrasted races, religions, and cultures, Dravidian, Mongolian, and Aryan, became a nation. H. G. Wells. The Outline of History_Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind.
- In their modes of expressing thought, these two generals contrasted quite as strongly as in their other characteristics. Ulysses S. Grant. Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant.
- This dangerous aspect of Ladislaw was strangely contrasted with other habits which became matter of remark. George Eliot. Middlemarch.
- She wore an amber-coloured flower, too, in her hair: it contrasted well with the jetty mass of her curls. Charlotte Bronte. Jane Eyre.
- I knew that--and yet even the mention of his age, when I contrasted it with hers, added to my blind hatred and distrust of him. Wilkie Collins. The Woman in White.
- Her look of confidence and diffidence contrasted with Ursula's sensitive expectancy. D. H. Lawrence. Women in Love .
- But as if to repress such vainglorious thoughts, there stood in the transept of the building, surrounded by and contrasting with the handiworks of man, one of the simplest productions of Nature. Frederick C. Bakewell. Great Facts.
- This contrasting of them with the rest seemed, I was glad to see, to do them good with her. Charles Dickens. Great Expectations.
- She was pale and fair, and her golden hair clustered on her temples, contrasting its rich hue with the living marble beneath. Mary Shelley. The Last Man.
- The first contrasting conception considered is that of preparing or getting ready for some future duty or privilege. John Dewey. Democracy and Education.
- A young and clever man was coming into that lonely heath from, of all contrasting places in the world, Paris. Thomas Hardy. The Return of the Native.
Edited by Bridget