hold a candle
Match in quality
To hold a candle to someone or something is to compare favorably with them—almost always used in the negative: Nothing holds a candle to my grandmother's cooking, He can't hold a candle to the original.
The phrase evokes an apprentice holding a candle for a master craftsman, too inferior to do the real work.
- compareAssess relative likeness
- pale in comparisonSeem inferior when contrasted
- lesserLower in degree
- measureUnit of quantity
- benchmarkStandard for comparison
standard · equal · inferior · fall short · match · subordinate · not worthy · inadequate · deficient · second fiddle · ability · carry a torch · competence · proverb · rival · illuminate · flame · metaphor
hold a candleoutshine
Exceed in brilliance
surpass · eclipse · outclass · tower above · put to shame
hold a candleexceed
Go past a limit
go beyond · transcend · set the standard · reign supreme · stand alone
hold, holds, held, holding, holder, holders, beholden, behold, beheld