comparatively

adv

Etymology: Etymology tree Latin comparātīvusbor. Old French comparatifbor. Middle English comparatif English comparative Middle English -ly English -ly English comparatively From comparative + -ly.

1. In a comparative manner.

   “And yet I suppose that my life has been, comparatively speaking, a happy one.”

   “Railway grouping had caused some peculiarly Scottish phraseology to disappear, though the note "Stops on timous notice to the guard" survived until comparatively recently.”

2. When compared to other entities.

   “Never did I see a more dreary and depressing scene. Miles on miles of quagmire, varied only by bright green strips of comparatively solid ground[.]”

   “In freewayless areas like the Northwest, traffic jams are comparatively fewer – encouraged by the lack of a highway, more people have been riding buses.”