Chinese word

相提并论

Pronunciation

Pinyinxiāng tí bìng lùn

Meaning

  • idiomcompare on equal terms

Example

这两件事不能相提并论。zhè liǎng jiàn shì bù néng xiāng tí bìng lùn

These two things cannot be mentioned in the same breath.

Illustration for 相提并论 (compare on equal terms)

More examples

媒体不应把名人的私生活与其职业成就相提并论。méi tǐ bù yīng bǎ míng rén de sī shēng huó yǔ qí zhí yè chéng jiù xiāng tí bìng lùn

The media should not compare celebrities' private lives with their professional achievements on equal terms.

Core concept

Two unlike things are placed on the same scale and judged as though the comparison were fair.

Common phrases

  • 不宜相提并论bù yí xiāng tí bìng lùn

    should not be compared on equal terms

  • 将...与...相提并论jiāng yǔ xiāng tí bìng lùn

    compare ___ with ___ on equal terms

  • 与...相提并论yǔ xiāng tí bìng lùn

    compare ___ with another on equal terms

Similar words

混为一谈hùn wéi yì tán: Lumping different things together as if they were identical.
一概而论yí gài ér lùn: Making one general judgment about all cases while ignoring their separate circumstances.
等量齐观děng liàng qí guān: Viewing things as equally valuable or important despite differences between them.

Definition in Chinese

用同一标准讨论或评价本质不同的事物，表示不应将二者等同或简单比较。yòng tóng yì biāo zhǔn tǎo lùn huò píng jià běn zhì bù tóng de shì wù biǎo shì bù yīng jiāng èr zhě děng tóng huò jiǎn dān bǐ jiào

Word origin

相 (xiāng, "each other") + 提 (tí, "bring up") + 并 (bìng, "together") + 论 (lùn, "discuss") creates the image of bringing different things into one discussion and judging them by one standard.

Usage tips

  • For English speakers, compare often sounds neutral, while this idiom commonly signals that the comparison is invalid because the things differ in kind or importance.

Other meanings

  • treat as identicalidiom

Opposites

  • 不可同日而语bù kě tóng rì ér yǔcannot be mentioned in the same breathidiom
  • 大相径庭dà xiāng jìng tíngdiffer greatlyidiom

Word lists with this word