Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - comparison

 noun  Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French ~, from Latin comparation-, comparatio, from comparare  Date: 14th century  1. the act or process of comparing: as  a. the representing of one thing or person as similar to or like another  b. an examination of two or more items to establish similarities and dissimilarities his faults seem minor by ~  2. identity of features ; similarity several points of ~ between the two  3. the modification of an adjective or adverb to denote different levels of quality, quantity, or relation