ENGLISH
REFERENCE

in contrast

prep. phr..
B1 Intermediate Oxford

prep. phr.. you use this to show that two things are very different from each other.

prep. phr.. a transitional phrase used to introduce a comparison highlighting significant differences between two subjects or situations.


SIMPLE

The city is loud; in contrast, the village is very quiet.

CONTEXTUAL

The first half of the game was slow, but in contrast, the second half was full of excitement.

COMPLEX

The company's profits reached record highs this year; in contrast, its main competitor faced a series of devastating financial losses.

Usage

usually appears at the beginning of a sentence or after a semicolon to link two opposing ideas.

Teaching tip

contrast with 'on the other hand' (which can show two sides of one idea) and 'however' (which shows a general contradiction); 'in contrast' specifically focuses on the difference between two things.

Pitfall

In the contrast, the red one is better.In contrast, the red one is better.the phrase is a fixed expression and does not take a definite article.

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