"Never on par" in a sentence

Just wondering if the following sentence is correct:

"A and B are never on par."

Is it equivalent to saying that A and B are not equal?

Must the phrase "on par" always be followed by "with"?

Solution 1:

From Merriam-Webster's definition of the idiom on (a) par with:

: at the same level or standard as (someone or something else)
// The new version of the software is on a par with the old one.
// His new book is on par with his best sellers.

The use of the indefinite article is optional; however, Google Books NGram Viewer suggests that the inclusion of the article is more common.

On par with or on a par with can mean the same thing as equal, but only in this one sense of the word.

You would not say, for instance, say that "1+2 is on a par with 4-1" when describing an equation. You might, however, say that "in terms of an acceptable answer, '1+2' is on a par with '4-1'."

I don't think that anybody would misunderstand you if you said that "A and B are never on par" (although, to my ears, "A and B are never on a par" sounds a bit off)—but it would be a nonstandard way of using the expression, which is normally used as a comparison in one direction.

More commonly, I expect, people would say that "A is never on (a) par with B."