Main Difference – Fair vs Fare
Although the two words fair and fare look and sound similar, they do not mean the same. Fair has a number of different meanings; fair, as an adjective, can mean unbiased, pleasant, pale, fine whereas the noun fair refers to an exhibition or a gathering of stalls. Fare, as a noun, refers to fees whereas the verb fare means to perform or get along. This is the main difference between fair and fare.
Fair – Meaning and Usage
As mentioned above fair has numerous meanings. As a noun, fair refers to
A gathering of stalls and amusements for public entertainment
My mother took us to the fair every year.
Our church organized a fair to raise funds.
As an adjective, fair means,
Unbiased, impartial
He can be trusted to give a fair judgment.
You’ll get a fair chance to explain your side of the story.
Pale, light Complexion or hair
That tall girl with fair hair is a friend of my sister’s.
He was a skinny, fair boy with large brown eyes.
Moderate or considerable in size or amount
He did a fair bit of singing.
Tracking down her friends and family took a fair amount of time.
Fine (weather)
One fine day, they decided to explore the beach.
It was a fair day in spring.
Fare – Meaning and Usage
Fare can be used as a noun and a verb. As a noun, fare has two basic meanings. It can refer to,
Money paid for a journey on public transport
The airlines have doubled their fare during the course of the year.
What’s the bus fare from Calcutta to Delhi?
His son didn’t attend the funeral because he couldn’t afford the airfare.
A range of food of a particular type
They were offered a traditional Moroccan fare at the hotel.
The traditional aristocratic fare included many fancy foods.
As a verb, fare means to get along or perform in a particular way. This is an intransitive verb, which means that it is not followed by an object.
The communist party did not fare well in the elections.
How did you fare on your exam?
Difference Between Fair and Fare
Grammatical Category
Fair is a noun and an adjective.
Fare is a noun and a verb.
Noun
Fair refers to a gathering of stalls or an exhibition.
Fare refers to the money charged for a journey in the public transport or a range of food.
Adjective
Fair can have different meanings such as pale, unbiased, moderate, pleasant, etc.
Fare is not an adjective.
Verb
Fair is not a verb.
Fare means to get on or perform in a specific way.
Image Courtesy:
” Trade Fair” by JATAWTF – JATAWTF (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia
“Sunday Roast” (CC BY 2.0) via Commons Wikimedia