sensushiClassroom

N4 — outside your level filter

に比くらべて

にくらべてni kurabeteN4neutral

に比くらべて

compared to N; in comparison with N

去年きょねんに比くらべて、今年ことしは本当ほんとうに寒さむいね。

kyonen ni kurabete, kotoshi wa hontou ni samui ne.

Compared to last year, it's really cold this year. casual

都会とかいに比くらべて、田舎いなかは物価ぶっかが安やすい。

tokai ni kurabete, inaka wa bukka ga yasui.

Prices are lower in the countryside compared with the city. neutral

Same meaning13

more than; the most

All examples3

compared to N; in comparison with N — a clear standard for comparing

  1. 去年きょねんに比くらべて、今年ことしは本当ほんとうに寒さむいね。

    kyonen ni kurabete, kotoshi wa hontou ni samui ne.

    Compared to last year, it's really cold this year. casual

  2. 都会とかいに比くらべて、田舎いなかは物価ぶっかが安やすい。

    tokai ni kurabete, inaka wa bukka ga yasui.

    Prices are lower in the countryside compared with the city. neutral

  3. 前年度ぜんねんどに比くらべ、売上高うりあげだかは十じゅっパーセント増加ぞうかいたしました。

    zennendo ni kurabe, uriagedaka wa juppaasento zouka itashimashita.

    Compared to the previous fiscal year, sales increased by ten percent. formal

How it's formed1

All forms3

  • と比くらべてtokurabetecolloquial

    と in place of に sounds more matter-of-fact, naming both items as equals.

  • に比くらべnikurabeformal

    て drops mid-sentence in reports and news copy — 前ぜん年度ねんどに比くらべ、売上うりあげ高だかは増加ぞうかした. Never in conversation.

  • それに比くらべてsorenikurabetealternant

    Takes the whole last sentence as the standard, naming nothing else — 去年きょねんは雨あめが多おおかった。それに比くらべて、今年ことしはよく晴はれる。

Notes

Needs a real noun as the standard, not an adjective (高たかいに比くらべて fails). The
quality compared goes in the main sentence, not here.