“Compose” and “comprise” are tricky words. They’re so similar in sound and somewhat in definition that they cause most wordsmiths to pause and pull out the dictionary. One word is designed to relate the details to the whole, and the other is designed to relate the whole to the details.
Which one is which? “Compose” means “to make up”; thus, it is used when describing the relationship of the details to the whole. For instance, when talking about a quartet one would say, “Four musicians compose the band.”
Comprise means “to consist of.” It is a word meant to illustrate how the whole relates to the parts. In the case of the quartet, “The band comprises four musicians.”
Have a question about the two words or another question about words or grammar? Let me know in a comment or on the Facebook page.
Will you still love me if I never get that distinction right??? 🙁
xoxo
Claudia
SocialMediaDDS Haha! Of course I will. I know I’ll be haunting this post, too, whenever I need to use one of the words. 🙂
Never thought of it but you’re right – these two terms are probably used interchangeably when really they’re not. Good tip FWIW.
3HatsComm Thanks! This one’s probably trickier than “further” and “farther.” I always get caught on “lay” and “lie.” No matter how many times I review the usage, I have to look up the two words again.