'comparer' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'comparare,' where 'com-' meant 'with, together' and 'parare' meant 'to prepare/arrange.'

'comparer' developed from Old French 'comparer' (to compare) and Middle English forms from the verb 'compare'; the modern English verb 'compare' gave rise to the agent noun formed with the suffix '-er' (hence 'comparer').

Initially it meant 'to make equal or prepare together,' and over time it evolved into the sense 'to examine similarities and differences'; the agent noun came to mean 'one who compares' or 'a device that compares.'