Matching game
Comparable or identique: how French compares two cases
Use comparable à and identique à precisely. Match bounded comparisons to their criteria and separate useful similarity from identity.
- B2
- 6 pairs
- Tap to match
- Learn this in the B2 notebook →
In short
Comparable à means sufficiently similar for a stated comparison; identique à means the same in the respect being discussed. Name the criterion: comparables en taille, identiques quant au tarif. Two comparable services can have different timetables.
Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learn
Two districts each have about ten thousand residents. They are comparable in population size, but that tells you little about hills, distances or transport funding. A good comparison identifies the feature that makes the cases relevant to one another. The adjective alone does not supply that feature.
| French | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| comparable à | similar enough for a given comparison | Ce quartier est comparable au nôtre par sa densité. |
| identique à | the same on the specified feature | Le tarif est identique à celui de l’an dernier. |
| différent de | different from | Le financement est différent de celui de la ville voisine. |
| similaire à | similar to | Les horaires sont similaires à ceux de notre réseau. |
Les deux réseaux sont comparables en longueur, mais leurs fréquences diffèrent.
The two networks are comparable in length, but their service frequencies differ.
Notice the complements: comparable à, identique à, différent de. With a masculine noun, à le becomes au: comparable au réseau voisin. When you repeat a comparison with celui or celle, choose the pronoun that refers to the noun: la fréquence est identique à celle du samedi. The word after celle identifies the second case.
Tap one on the left, then its partner on the right.
A criterion does not transfer to every other feature
Suppose both networks run every twenty minutes, but one stops at 20:00 and the other at midnight. They are comparable in frequency during the shared operating period. They are not identical in operating hours. A summary that says les deux offres sont identiques would erase a meaningful difference. Prefer les fréquences sont comparables en journée ; en revanche, l’amplitude horaire diffère.
In a source synthesis, add the criterion before making a judgement. Les cas sont comparables sur ce point is stronger and clearer than a vague c’est pareil. If a source says cases are not comparable terme à terme, preserve that limitation instead of translating it as “nothing can be learnt from them”. It rejects direct equivalence, while a more carefully bounded comparison may still be useful.