difference

The word “difference” means the way in which two or more things are unlike each other. In plain terms, how two things aren’t the same, a disagreement, or a subtraction result.

“Difference” is pronounced DIHF-ruhns (/ˈdɪf(ə)ɹəns/ in IPA).

Here is “difference” used in a sentence: “Can you spot the difference between these two photos?”

Words with a similar meaning to “difference” include differentiation, differentness, distinction, distinguishedness, nonidentity and unidenticality.

The opposite of “difference” — its antonyms — are identity, identicality, identicalness and sameness.

“Difference” is a noun.

The word “difference” comes from Latin. From Old French difference, from Latin differentia, itself from differens, the present participle of differre, "to differ.".

“Difference” is a very common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A1 level.

To 'make a difference' means to have a noticeable effect, usually a positive one that improves a situation. If a volunteer's work makes a difference, it genuinely helps. The phrase can also be literal, meaning something changes the outcome, as in 'a good night's sleep makes all the difference'.

The opposite of difference is similarity or sameness, the quality of things being alike rather than unlike. Related opposites include resemblance, likeness and uniformity. Where a difference marks how things diverge, a similarity marks what they share. Both ideas are often weighed together when comparing two or more things.

A difference is simply any way in which things are unlike each other. A distinction is a difference that people deliberately notice, draw or treat as important. All distinctions rest on differences, but calling something a distinction suggests the contrast matters or has been singled out for attention.

The clearest examples compare two things directly: the difference between cats and dogs, or between summer and winter. A price difference of ten pounds shows how two amounts are unlike. In each case, the difference is whatever sets the items apart, whether size, colour, cost or behaviour.