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)

  (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈkɒntɹɑːst/

• (Northern England, Scotland) IPA^(key): /ˈkɒntɹast/

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

Audio (US):

(file)

• (verb)

  (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /kənˈtɹɑːst/

  Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• (Northern England, Scotland) IPA^(key): /kənˈtɹast/

  (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

• by contrast
• contrast agent
• contrastless
• contrast medium
• contrastment
• contrast radiography
• contrast ratio
• contrast set
• contrast therapy
• contrasty
• hysterosalpingo contrast sonography
• hysterosalpingo-contrast-sonography
• in contrast
• metacontrast
• multicontrast
• noncontrast
• paracontrast
• phase contrast microscope
• phase contrast microscopy
• postcontrast
• precontrast
• radiocontrast
• reverse contrast
• thorotrast

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; to counterpoint.
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

• contrastable
• 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, Valencia) [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

	singular			plural
	indefinite	definite		indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	contrast	contrastul		contraste	contrastele
genitive-dative	contrast	contrastului		contraste	contrastelor
vocative	contrastule			contrastelor