dif ‧ fer W3 /ˈdɪfə $ -ər/ BrE AmE verb [intransitive]
[ Word Family: verb : ↑ differ , ↑ differentiate ; noun : ↑ difference , ↑ differentiation ; adverb : ↑ differently ; adjective : ↑ different ]
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: French ; Origin: différer 'to delay, be different' , from Latin differre , from ferre 'to carry' ]
1 . to be different from something in some way:
The two systems differ in many respects.
differ from
People differ from one another in their ability to handle stress.
differ between
The symptoms did not differ between the two groups.
differ widely/greatly/significantly etc
We soon found that prices differed enormously.
Experts have differing views on the subject.
2 . if two people or groups differ about something, they have opposite opinions SYN disagree
differ about/on/over
The two lawyers differed about how to present the case.
3 . agree to differ to stop arguing with someone and accept that you will never agree
4 . I beg to differ spoken formal used to say that you disagree with someone
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ differ + ADVERB
▪ differ greatly/enormously
Modern teaching methods differ greatly from those fifty years ago.
▪ differ significantly (=in an important way)
The second set of test results did not differ significantly from the first.
▪ differ considerably/widely/substantially (=greatly)
Opinions differ widely on the best way to do this.
▪ differ sharply/noticeably/markedly (=in a very noticeable way)
Ways of negotiating differ markedly across the Atlantic.
▪ differ radically (=very greatly)
The new car differed radically from the earlier model.
▪ differ fundamentally (=in a very basic way)
These paintings differed fundamentally from his earlier work.
▪ differ slightly
Prices differ slightly from one shop to another.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ disagree/not agree to have a different opinion from someone else about something:
Scholars disagree about the meaning of the poem.
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I don’t agree with a word of what she says.
▪ be divided/split if a group of people is divided or split on something, some of them have one opinion and others have a completely different opinion:
The party is divided on this issue.
▪ differ if two or more people differ about something, they have different opinions from each other about it:
The two men differed on how to handle the crisis.
▪ not see eye to eye used to say that two people have different opinions and ideas so that it is difficult for them to be friends or work together:
Some of the teachers don’t see eye to eye with the principal of the school.
▪ be mistaken used to say that you disagree with someone’s opinion and that you think they are wrong:
People are mistaken if they think that this problem will go away on its own.
▪ take issue with somebody/something formal to express strong disagreement with an idea or with what someone has said or done:
A number of people took issue with the mayor’s decision.
▪ dissent formal to say publicly that you disagree with an official opinion or one that most people accept:
Two members of the jury dissented from the majority verdict.