থিসরাস নিবন্ধ: a difference

a difference

These words all refer to a way that someone or something is not the same as other people or things around them.

The word difference has the broadest meaning of all these words. It can refer to the state of being different, or to a specific way that one person or thing is different from another.

What's the difference between the two cars?

I didn't realize there was such a big age difference between him and his second wife - she could be his daughter!

A distinction is a difference between things that seem similar.

There's a clear distinction between the two countries' cultures.

The politician was criticized for refusing to draw a distinction between a lawful protest and an unlawful riot.

A contrast is an obvious difference between two or more people or things. Contrast appears more in writing than in speech.

I like the contrast of those red shoes with your black suit.

Her kind words to me stood in sharp contrast with her sister's sullen silence.

In formal contexts, you can use the word discrepancy to describe a difference between two things that should be the same.

There is some discrepancy between the two accounts.

In formal contexts, a very large difference between two groups of people or things that seem similar can be called a chasm.

There is a widening chasm between public health officials and popular opinion.

He hoped his film would bridge the chasm between art cinema and popular rom-coms.

An important difference in the opinions or situations of two groups of people can be called a gulf.

Peace talks attempted to bridge the gulf between the two warring nations.

Her election might begin to heal the political gulf that has fractured our nation.

A difference between two groups of people that exists because of something unfair or unequal is often called a gap. Gap is usually used to describe a difference that can be measured somehow, and that harms one group more than another. In formal contexts, this is also called a disparity.

The achievement gap between low-income students and high-income students is well-documented.

Commons introduced a bill to close the pay gap between men and women.

The disparities between the rich and the poor are only growing.