An equative construction is a construction which compares two entities with respect to a gradable property and in which both show the same degree of the property.
Equative constructions are sometimes also discussed under the heading "comparison of equality". (And note that "equative" has sometimes been used in the sense "equational", e.g. for kinds of copula clauses.) In a basic equative construction, one of the compared entities is coded as a subject and the other as a nonsubject ('The tree is as tall as the house'; see "basic comparative construction"). But identity of degree may also be expressed in different ways, e.g. 'The tree and the house are equally tall', or 'The height of the tree equals the house's'.
equative construction (CXN) = a construction that has the semantic function of assigning the identical position on a gradable predicative scale to two referents, the comparee and the standard. Example: The tree is as tall as the house is an instance of the equative construction: the comparee is the tree, the standard is the house, the gradable comparative scale is height, and the comparee is equal to the standard in height. (Section 17.2.4)