contrast

English

Etymology

From French contraster, from Italian contrastare (“to resist", "to withstand”), from Vulgar Latin *contrāstāre, from Latin contrā (“against”) + stō, stāre (“to stand”).

Pronunciation

• (noun)

  (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈkɒntɹɑːst/

  (US) enPR: kŏn'trăst, IPA^(key): /ˈkɑnt(ʃ)ɹæst/

Audio (US)

(file)

• (verb)

  (UK) IPA^(key): /kənˈtɹɑːst/

  Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

  (US) enPR: kəntrăst', kŏn'trăst, IPA^(key): /kənˈt(ʃ)ɹæst/, /ˈkɑnt(ʃ)ɹæst/

• Rhymes: -ɑːst

Noun

contrast (countable and uncountable, plural contrasts)

1. (countable) A difference in lightness, brightness and/or hue between two colours that makes them more or less distinguishable.
   1. (uncountable) The degree of this difference.

      The red and the orange don't have much contrast between them — I can hardly tell them apart.

   2. (countable) A control on a television, etc, that adjusts the amount of contrast in the images being displayed.
      • 2009 May 4, Michael Chapman; Matthew Chapman, “Hremail #7”, in Homestar Runner‎^[1], spoken by Strong Bad (Matthew Chapman):

        Ohh, you can't fool me. This thing's top of the line! It's got two contrast knobs!

2. (countable) A difference between two objects, people or concepts.

   Israel is a country of many contrasts.

   • 1908, W[illiam] B[lair] M[orton] Ferguson, chapter I, in Zollenstein, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:

     The colonel and his sponsor made a queer contrast: Greystone [the sponsor] long and stringy, with a face that seemed as if a cold wind was eternally playing on it.

   • 1851, Herman Melville, Moby Dick, Chapter 11:

     ... there is no quality in this world that is not what it is merely by contrast.

3. (countable) Something that is opposite of or strikingly different from something else.
   • 2001, David L. Lieber, Jules Harlow, Etz Hayim: Torah and Commentary, page 746:

     Why this denunciation of idolatry at this point? And why are Shabbat and the sanctuary mentioned as contrasts to idol worship?

4. (countable, uncountable, rhetoric) Antithesis.

Derived terms

• contrast agent
• contrast medium
• contrast radiography
• contrast ratio
• contrast set
• contrast therapy
• hysterosalpingo contrast sonography
• hysterosalpingo-contrast-sonography
• in contrast
• metacontrast
• noncontrast
• paracontrast
• phase contrast microscope
• phase contrast microscopy
• reverse contrast

Translations

difference that makes colours more or less distinguishable

• Azerbaijani: təzad (az), kontrast
• Bulgarian: контраст (bg) m (kontrast)
• Catalan: contrast (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 对比度 (zh) (duìbǐdù)

• Esperanto: kontrasto (eo)
• Finnish: kontrasti (fi)
• Galician: contraste (gl) m
• Georgian: კონტრასტი (ḳonṭrasṭi)
• German: Kontrast (de) m
• Italian: contrasto (it) m
• Japanese: please add this translation if you can
• Maori: pūrata
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: kontrast (no) m

  Nynorsk: kontrast m

• Persian: کنتراست (fa) (kontrâst)
• Polish: kontrast (pl) m
• Portuguese: contraste (pt) m
• Romanian: contrast (ro) n
• Russian: контра́ст (ru) m (kontrást)
• Spanish: contraste (es) m
• Swedish: kontrast (sv) c

degree of this difference

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Esperanto: kontrasto (eo)
• Finnish: kontrasti (fi)
• Georgian: კონტრასტი (ḳonṭrasṭi)
• German: Kontrast (de) m
• Italian: contrasto (it) m
• Japanese: please add this translation if you can
• Maori: pūrata
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: kontrast (no) m

  Nynorsk: kontrast m

• Portuguese: contraste (pt) m
• Romanian: contrast (ro) n
• Spanish: contraste (es) m
• Swedish: kontrast (sv) c

difference between two objects, people or concepts

• Azerbaijani: təzad (az), kontrast
• Bulgarian: контраст (bg) m (kontrast)
• Catalan: contrast (ca) m
• Czech: protiklad (cs) m
• Esperanto: kontrasto (eo)
• Finnish: vastakohta (fi), kontrasti (fi)
• French: contraste (fr) m
• Galician: contraste (gl) m
• Georgian: კონტრასტი (ḳonṭrasṭi)
• German: Gegensatz (de) m, Kontrast (de) m, Unterschied (de) m
• Hebrew: ניגוד (he) m (nigud)
• Italian: contrasto (it), diversità (it) f
• Latvian: kontrasts m, pretstats m
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: kontrast (no) m

  Nynorsk: kontrast m

• Polish: kontrast (pl) m
• Portuguese: contraste (pt) m
• Spanish: contraste (es) m
• Swedish: kontrast (sv) c

control on a television, etc

• Bulgarian: контраст (bg) m (kontrast)
• Esperanto: kontrasto (eo)
• Finnish: kontrastinappula
• Georgian: კონტრასტი (ḳonṭrasṭi)
• German: Kontrast (de) m
• Italian: contrasto (it) m
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: kontrast (no) m

  Nynorsk: kontrast m

• Portuguese: contraste (pt) m
• Spanish: contraste (es) m
• Swedish: kontrast (sv)

Verb

contrast (third-person singular simple present contrasts, present participle contrasting, simple past and past participle contrasted)

1. (transitive) To set in opposition in order to show the difference or differences between.
2. (intransitive) To form a contrast.

   Foreground and background strongly contrast.

   • 1845, Charles Lyell, Lyell's Travels in North America:

     The joints which divide the sandstone contrast finely with the divisional planes which separate the basalt into pillars.

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of "to show difference"): liken

Derived terms

• compare and contrast
• contrasting
• contrastive

Translations

to set in opposition in order to show the difference or differences between

• Bulgarian: противопоставям (bg) (protivopostavjam), контрастирам (bg) (kontrastiram)
• Czech: kontrastovat
• Esperanto: kontrasti
• Finnish: asettaa vastakkain, verrata (fi)
• French: contraster (fr)
• German: gegenüberstellen (de)
• Greek: αντιπαραβάλλω (el) (antiparavállo)
• Hebrew: הנגיד (hingíd)
• Maori: whakatairite
• Polish: kontrastować (pl) impf
• Portuguese: contrastar (pt)
• Russian: противопоставля́ть (ru) impf (protivopostavljátʹ), противопоста́вить (ru) pf (protivopostávitʹ)
• Swedish: kontrastera (sv)

to form a contrast

• Finnish: muodostaa vastakohta, toimia vastakohtana
• French: contraster (fr)
• Polish: kontrastować (pl) impf
• Spanish: contrastar (es)
• Swedish: kontrastera (sv)

See also

• compare

Catalan

Etymology

Deverbal from contrastar. First attested in the 14th century.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [kunˈtɾast]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic, Valencian) [konˈtɾast]

Noun

contrast m (plural contrasts or contrastos)

1. contrast

Further reading

• “contrast” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “contrast” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “contrast” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from French contraste, from Middle French contraste, from Italian contrasto.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kɔnˈtrɑst/

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: con‧trast
• Rhymes: -ɑst

Noun

contrast n (plural contrasten, diminutive contrastje n)

1. A contrast.

   Synonym: tegenstelling

Related terms

• contrasteren

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French contraste.

Noun

contrast n (plural contraste)

1. contrast

Declension

Declension of contrast

	singular		plural
	indefinite articulation	definite articulation	indefinite articulation	definite articulation
nominative/accusative	(un) contrast	contrastul	(niște) contraste	contrastele
genitive/dative	(unui) contrast	contrastului	(unor) contraste	contrastelor
vocative	contrastule		contrastelor