COMPARE CRITICALLY is a process of analyzing two or more items in order to determine their similarities and differences. The term can be broken down into two crossword solutions: PAN (3 letters) and COLLATE (7 letters). PAN stands for 'Probe and Analyze, ' which means to thoroughly investigate and examine something. COLLATE, on the other hand, means to arrange in a logical order for comparison. Therefore, COMPARE CRITICALLY is a process of carefully examining and arranging items in order to compare them.