Confrontare

Confrontare is an Italian transitive verb meaning to compare two or more things, to contrast them, or to place them side by side for examination. It is commonly used in contexts ranging from data analysis and scientific reporting to everyday decisions. The reflexive form confrontarsi means to face or deal with something, or to compare oneself with someone in a figurative sense, as in confrontarsi con una realtà.

Originating from Latin confronare, formed from con- “together” and fron- (from frons, frontis) meaning “face,” the verb conveys the sense of placing faces together. The related noun confronto denotes a comparison or a face-to-face confrontation.

Confrontare is a regular -are verb. In the present indicative: confronto, confronti, confronta, confrontiamo, confrontate, confrontano. The imperfect: confrontavo, confrontavi, confrontava, confrontavamo, confrontavate, confrontavano. The future: confronterò, confronterai, confronterà, confronteremo, confronterete, confronteranno. The past participle is confrontato and the gerund is confrontando. The passato prossimo is formed with avere: ho confrontato, hai confrontato, ha confrontato, abbiamo confrontato, avete confrontato, hanno confrontato. The present subjunctive: confronti, confronti, confronti, confrontiamo, confrontiate, confrontino. The conditional present: confronterei, confronteresti, confronterebbe, confronteremmo, confrontereste, confronterebbero.

Common usages include confrontare dati, prezzi, teorie o ipotesi (to compare data, prices, theories, or hypotheses). Confrontare is distinct from paragona­re (paragonare), which emphasizes similarities and differences, and from confrontarsi, which can mean to face an opponent or to come to terms with a reality.