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In sense 6 of the word "back" in the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary, I found the following line:

Oxford 'compare' keyword

I'm not sure how to interpret the keyword "compare" here (following the link for the definition of "reverse", I could see that it's synonymous with "back" but not quite sure).

So, does "compare" mean the same as "synonym"? If yes, why doesn't it use the word "synonym" here (note: the dictionary uses "synonym" in other places also)?

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    No. A suggestion for you to compare a related word tells you it is not a synonym. It means it is worth a look to weigh it against (compare and contrast it with) the key word. Tall, compare Grand. Fancy, compare Lofty. Lofty, compare Cloudy. Pedestrian, compare Boring.
    – Yosef Baskin
    Commented Sep 9 at 4:20
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    You are asking "If I move backwards, I reverse, right?" No, you do not necessarily reverse. If I move forwards, a move backwards is reversing. If I did not move forward, I can still move backwards, but there is no reversing. The other way, if I make a dance move Left-Right, I can reverse that as Right-Left with no move backwards at all. The meanings overlap, that's all. So, does reversing now mean Right-Left? No, only in my rare example.
    – Yosef Baskin
    Commented Sep 9 at 4:45
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    @YosefBaskin - at least where I come from, 'reverse' can mean 'move a car backwards by engaging reverse gear' and there is no automatic implication of prior forward movement.
    – Michael Harvey
    Commented Sep 9 at 6:43
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    Also, please quote both definitions. Don't post screenshots.
    – Stuart F
    Commented Sep 9 at 7:13
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    A suggestion to 'compare and contrast' two things doesn't mean that they are 'in contrast to' one another, just that they may be similar in some ways and slightly different in others. In this case, reverse is only used of vehicles but back can refer to a person or animal moving backwards.
    – Kate Bunting
    Commented Sep 9 at 7:38

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Compare in this context has the sense of place these words side by side and see what further information you can learn by studying them together.

Comparing two words does not mean they are synonyms. It is likely that there will be some overlap in meaning, so that we could point to some examples where they are synonyms. But if the words are so close that they are effectively identical and therefore always synonyms, we could expect a good dictionary to describe them as synonyms.

The OP itself has a good example of this. It gives a definition of back (verb) as follows:

To move or make something move backwards

It then gives two examples of this usage:

  • He backed against the wall, terrified.
  • If you can't drive in forwards, try backing it in.

Now if we try to replace back with reverse in these two sentences, we find that the result is not the same. In the second sentence, it's entirely natural to say try reversing it in, and the meaning of the sentence will be unchanged. But He reversed against the wall would at the very least be considered unnatural. The two words are not synonyms in every context, and comparing them will help you to have a better understanding of both words.

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  • Thanks a lot. The approach you used is very useful!!!
    – Kt Student
    Commented Sep 9 at 11:29

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