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Comfort vs Sympathize - What's the difference?

comfort | sympathize |

As verbs the difference between comfort and sympathize

is that comfort is to relieve the distress or suffering of; to provide comfort to while sympathize is to show sympathy; to be affected by feelings similar to those of another, in consequence of knowing the person to be thus affected.

As a noun comfort

is contentment, ease.

comfort

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • Contentment, ease.
    • Sleep in comfort with our new mattress.
  • Something that offers comfort.
    • the comforts of home
  • A consolation; something relieving suffering or worry.
    • We still have the spare tire? That's a comfort at least.
  • A cause of relief or satisfaction.
    • The outcome of the peace negotiations in Moscow in 1940 was a heavy blow to the young nation, but in the same time a great comfort : at least the independency was preserved.

    Synonyms

    *

    Antonyms

    * austerity

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To relieve the distress or suffering of; to provide comfort to.
    • Rob comforted Aaron because he was lost and very sad.
  • * Francis Bacon
    • Light excelleth in comforting the spirits of men.
  • To make comfortable. (rfex)
  • (obsolete) To make strong; to invigorate; to fortify; to corroborate.
    • (Wyclif)
  • * Hooker
    • God's own testimony doth not a little comfort and confirm the same.
  • (obsolete) To assist or help; to aid.
  • * Shakespeare
    • I cannot help the noble chevalier: / God comfort him in this necessity!

    Synonyms

    * besoothe

    Derived terms

    * cold comfort * comfort woman * comfortable * comforter * comforting * discomfort * letter of comfort ----

    sympathize

    English

    Verb

    (North America)
  • To show sympathy; to be affected by feelings similar to those of another, in consequence of knowing the person to be thus affected.
  • * Addison
    • Their countrymen sympathized with their heroes in all their adventures.
  • To have a common feeling, as of bodily pleasure or pain.
  • * Buckminster
    • The mind will sympathize so much with the anguish and debility of the body, that it will be too distracted to fix itself in meditation.
  • To agree; to be in accord; to harmonize.
    • (Dryden)

    Usage notes

    Used similarly to empathize, interchangeably in looser usage. In stricter usage, (term) is stronger and more intimate, while sympathize is weaker and more distant; see . Further, the general “agree, accord” sense of sympathize is not shared with (term).