different English · revision 1831

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=c. 1384 (Wycliffite Bible)|origins=ine-pro *bher-}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈdɪf.ər.ənt/, /ˈdɪf.rənt/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|different]], [[bor|fro|different]],^(Etymonline)^(AHD)^(SOED 2002) [[der|la|differēns|t=differing]] (stem [[m|la|different-]]), the present participle of [[m|la|differre|t=to carry apart; to be different]],^(MWU 2024)^(Webster's Third 1961) from [[m|la|dis-|t=apart]] and [[m|la|ferre|t=to carry]],^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) from [[ine-pro|*bher-|t=to carry]].^(Etymonline) Random House gives its route as through Anglo-French.^(RHWU) Latin ''differre'' meant both “to put off” and “to differ”, and is the source of both [[defer]] and [[differ]].^(Cresswell 2021)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Unlike, dissimilar (about 1384, in the earlier Wycliffite Bible).^(MED)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The OED's first constructions with a following preposition are from 1526, and the prepositions ''from'', ''to'' and ''than'' have all been used by respected writers since then;^(OED 1989)^(SOED 2002)^(COED 2004) critics have objected to ''different than'' since the 18th century.^(AHD) In the 17th century the word also took a weaker sense, “other, not the same”, with no idea of unlikeness (''five different churches'').^(OED 1989)^(Johnson 1755) The adverbial use, “differently”, is recorded from 1744 and is now chiefly jocular or dialectal.^(MW Collegiate)^(SOED 2002) The colloquial sense “special, out of the ordinary” dates from 1912;^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) Dalzell notes that by the 1960s and 1970s ''it's different'' served as a polite way to avoid praising something.^(Dalzell 2013) The saying ''different strokes for different folks'' is American;^(Dalzell 2013)^(Cresswell 2021) Dalzell finds it in 1945, and the Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins links its fame to remarks by Muhammad Ali in the 1960s.^(Dalzell 2013)^(Cresswell 2021)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1384 – unlike, dissimilar (Wycliffite Bible).^(MED)

+ * c. 1400 – the OED's first quotation.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1483 – as a noun, a dispute (obsolete).^(OED 1989)

+ * 1526 – followed by ''from'', ''to'' or ''than''.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1651 – other, not the same.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1744 – as an adverb, differently.^(OED 1989)^(MW Collegiate)

+ * 1912 – out of the ordinary, special.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1945 – ''different strokes for different folks''.^(Dalzell 2013)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Not the same; unlike in form, nature or quality.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(COED 2004)

+ # Distinct or separate: ''on two different occasions''.^(AHD)^(COED 2004)

+ # Various: ''spoke to different members of the group''.^(AHD)

+ # ''(informal)'' Unusual, out of the ordinary.^(COED 2004)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ===Adverb===

+ # ''(informal or dialect)'' In a different way; differently.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[differently]]

+ * [[differentness]]

+ * [[differential]]

+ * [[differentiation]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[differ]]

+ * [[difference]]

+ * [[differentiate]]

+ * [[indifferent]]

+ * [[defer]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''Different from'' is the traditional and most widely accepted construction.^(COED 2004)^(Collins 2023) ''Different than'' is more common in American English, where it is generally accepted before a full clause (''the campus is different than it was''); ''different to'' is common in British English.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)^(RHWU) All three have been used by reputable writers for about 300 years.^(RHWU)^(AHD)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}