apples and oranges

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apples and oranges

noun apples to oranges

idiomatic, plural, plural only A comparison of items that, however categorically similar, is inapt; an incompatible analogy, or the items so compared; a disanalogy. It's apples and oranges. You can't convert square meters to linear inches.
Similar: chalk and cheese, day and night, night and day
plural, plural only Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see apples, and, oranges.

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Every language

noun non-comparable items

Español	peras y manzanas, peras con manzanas, patatas y apichus, no hay punto de comparación
中文	風馬牛不相及 /风马牛不相及 fēng mǎ niú bù xiāngjí
Português	misturar alhos com bugalhos
Français	mélanger des choux et des carottes, mélanger les torchons et les serviettes, comparer des pommes et des poires
Deutsch	Äpfel und Birnen
Italiano	mele e pere, mettere tutto nello stesso calderone, come il giorno e la notte
Română	compara mere cu pere, compara merele cu perele

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MLA

"apples and oranges." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/apples%20and%20oranges. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

apples and oranges. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/apples%20and%20oranges

Chicago

"apples and oranges." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/apples%20and%20oranges.

BibTeX

@misc{apples_and_oranges_2026,
  title = {apples and oranges},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/apples%20and%20oranges},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}