- difference
- noun1 way in which people/things are not the sameADJECTIVE▪ big, broad, considerable, dramatic, enormous, great, huge, large, major, profound, radical, real, sharp, substantial, vast, wide▪
A little extra care makes a big difference.
▪I noticed a real difference in his attitude.
▪ basic, essential, fundamental▪ crucial, important, key, main, significant▪A small number of additional jobs can make a crucial difference to economic conditions.
▪We found no significant difference between the two groups.
▪ clear, distinct, marked, notable, noticeable, observed, obvious, striking▪There is a striking difference between eastern and western Europe.
▪ apparent▪ minor, slight, small, subtle▪ potential▪ qualitative, statistical▪ national, regional▪ age, class, cultural, ethnic, gender, genetic, physical, psychological, racial, sex, social▪ historical, ideological, political▪ structural▪ temperature, time▪What's the time difference between New York and Tokyo?
VERB + DIFFERENCE▪ make▪The new central heating has made an enormous difference to the house.
▪What difference does it make if he doesn't have a car?
▪ mean▪One tiny mistake when you're climbing could mean the difference between life and death.
▪ emphasize, exaggerate, focus on, highlight, stress, underline▪We should be focusing on what we have in common rather than emphasizing our differences.
▪ appreciate, be aware of, detect, feel, find, know, note, notice, observe, perceive, recognize, see, spot, tell▪I found very little difference in price.
▪Only an expert would know the difference between the male and the female.
▪Can you spot the difference between these two photos?
▪It's difficult to tell the difference between butterflies and moths.
▪ understand▪ explain, illustrate▪ examine, explore, look at▪The study explores the differences between the way girls and boys talk.
▪ compare▪ demonstrate, exhibit (formal), indicate, reveal, show▪The questionnaire showed vast differences in what kind of product people want.
▪ mark, reflect▪Our different attitudes to life reflect the differences in our backgrounds.
DIFFERENCE + VERB▪ be, lie▪The difference lies in the way the fruit is prepared.
▪ arise (from sth), exist▪The differences in size arise from the amount of sunshine each plant gets.
▪ explain sth, reflect sth, suggest sthPREPOSITION▪ difference among▪There are few important policy differences among the main parties.
▪ difference between▪There's a big difference between reading about skiing and doing it yourself.
▪ difference from▪He was very aware of his difference from the other children.
▪ difference in▪The difference in price is not very significant.
▪ difference of▪a crucial difference of emphasis
▪ difference with▪There is one key difference with the earlier version of the software.
▪The difference with this information service is that it's free.
PHRASES▪ a … with a difference▪If you want a travel destination with a difference, come to Iceland.
▪ all the difference in the world▪There's all the difference in the world between choosing to do something and being forced to do it.
▪ a great deal of difference, a lot of difference▪The extra money will make a lot of difference to us.
▪ make all the difference▪Just five minutes' exercise a day could make all the difference.
▪ no difference, not much difference▪There's not much difference between baseball and softball.
2 sum of money in addition to the sum expectedVERB + DIFFERENCE▪ pay▪If you decide on the more expensive model, you can bring this one back and pay the difference.
▪ make up▪He didn't have enough money, but his aunt agreed to make up the difference.
▪ pocket▪He sold the car for more than he'd paid and pocketed the difference.
▪ split (figurative)▪I wanted to leave early and Ian wanted to leave late, so we split the difference and left at noon.
3 disagreementADJECTIVE▪ irreconcilable, major, serious, sharp▪ minor, slight▪ outstanding▪These talks aim to resolve the outstanding differences between the two sides.
VERB + DIFFERENCE▪ have▪They have had some minor differences, but in general they get on well together.
▪ make up (BrE), patch up, put aside, reconcile, resolve, settle▪We're going to get the two sides together to see if they can't settle their differences.
DIFFERENCE + VERB▪ arise, emerge, occur▪Differences may arise when the young people do not have the same expectations as their parents.
▪ remain▪Although the talks were generally successful, differences remain between the groups.
PREPOSITION▪ difference as to, difference over▪There were some differences as to how to deal with the crisis.
PHRASES▪ a difference of opinion▪She and Luke had a difference of opinion over how much money they should spend.
▪ have your differences▪Like any married couple, we have our differences.
Collocations dictionary. 2013.
