IB command term
Compare in IB exams: what the command term asks for
By Michael Thompson - Head of Teaching Excellence; 15 years as an IB Coordinator
Compare asks you to set out the similarities between two or more items or situations, keeping all of them in view throughout your answer. Every point must refer to each item. Describing one item and then the other is not a comparison.
Paraphrased from the command-term definitions in the IB Diploma Programme subject guides (International Baccalaureate Organization).
At a glance
Accounts and analysis
Answer shape: Linked paragraphs that connect parts, causes or differences
What compare asks you to do
Compare is about similarities. You are given two or more items or situations, and your task is to show what they share. The key requirement is that you refer to all of the items in every point you make. If you write a full account of the first item and then a full account of the second, you have described two things but you have not compared them.
Point by point, not block by block
Structure your answer point by point. Each paragraph should name one thing the items have in common and then show how that holds for each item. A block structure (everything about item A, then everything about item B) leaves the reader to do the comparing for you. A point-by-point structure does the comparing on the page, which is what the command term asks for.
Language that keeps the comparison explicit
Linking words make it obvious that you are comparing: both, similarly, likewise, in the same way. Use them to join the items inside a single sentence or paragraph. If you find a paragraph with no such link and only one item named, that is a sign you have slipped into description.
Choose similarities that matter
Not every shared feature is worth writing about. Trivial common ground earns nothing, so pick similarities of substance, ones that tell the reader something real about the items. Before you write a point, ask whether it says something meaningful about the topic or only that two things happen to share a label.
When compare appears alone
When a paper wants both similarities and differences, it pairs compare with contrast and says so. When the question says compare alone, keep your attention on similarities and resist drifting into differences. Read the exact wording of the question before you plan, so you answer what was asked.
Where it appears
History
If a history question asks you to compare two events, sources or situations, give each paragraph one shared feature and refer to both items within it. Avoid narrating the first and then the second.
History tutoringBiology
If a biology question asks you to compare two structures, processes or organisms, name a feature they share and state it for each item in the same paragraph, using words such as both or similarly.
Biology tutoringGeography
If a geography question asks you to compare two places, systems or case studies, choose shared features of substance and show each one for every place, rather than writing a separate profile of each.
Geography tutoringPsychology
If a psychology question asks you to compare two theories, studies or approaches, build the answer around what they share, and refer to each of them in every point you make.
Psychology tutoringCommon mistakes
- Writing a full account of one item and then a full account of the other, which describes both but compares neither.
- Making a point that refers to only one item, so the comparison is left incomplete.
- Listing trivial common ground that tells the reader nothing of substance.
- Drifting into differences when the question says compare alone.
- Leaving out linking language, so the reader cannot see which similarity you are pointing to.
Frequently asked questions
- What does compare mean in IB exams?
- It means setting out the similarities between two or more items or situations, with all of them kept in view throughout the answer. Each point you make should refer to every item.
- Should I write about differences when the question says compare?
- Not when compare appears alone. The focus is on similarities. When a paper wants differences too, it pairs compare with contrast and says so in the question.
- How should I structure a compare answer?
- Go point by point. Each paragraph names one similarity and shows how it applies to each item. Avoid the block approach, where you write about one item and then the other.
- Which words help show I am comparing?
- Both, similarly, likewise and in the same way all make the comparison explicit. Use them to connect the items in the same sentence or paragraph.
Related command terms
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