noun
1 way in which people/things are not the same
ADJECTIVE
▪ big , broad , considerable , dramatic , enormous , great , huge , large , major , profound , radical , real , sharp , substantial , vast , wide
▪
A little extra care makes a big ~.
▪
I noticed a real ~ in his attitude.
▪ basic , essential , fundamental
▪ crucial , important , key , main , significant
▪
A small number of additional jobs can make a crucial ~ to economic conditions.
▪
We found no significant ~ between the two groups.
▪ clear , distinct , marked , notable , noticeable , observed , obvious , striking
▪
There is a striking ~ 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 ~ between New York and Tokyo?
VERB + DIFFERENCE
▪ make
▪
The new central heating has made an enormous ~ to the house.
▪
What ~ does it make if he doesn't have a car?
▪ mean
▪
One tiny mistake when you're climbing could mean the ~ 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 ~s.
▪ appreciate , be aware of , detect , feel , find , know , note , notice , observe , perceive , recognize , see , spot , tell
▪
I found very little ~ in price.
▪
Only an expert would know the ~ between the male and the female.
▪
Can you spot the ~ between these two photos?
▪
It's difficult to tell the ~ between butterflies and moths.
▪ understand
▪ explain , illustrate
▪ examine , explore , look at
▪
The study explores the ~s between the way girls and boys talk.
▪ compare
▪ demonstrate , exhibit ( formal ), indicate , reveal , show
▪
The questionnaire showed vast ~s in what kind of product people want.
▪ mark , reflect
▪
Our different attitudes to life reflect the ~s in our backgrounds.
DIFFERENCE + VERB
▪ be , lie
▪
The ~ lies in the way the fruit is prepared.
▪ arise (from sth) , exist
▪
The ~s in size arise from the amount of sunshine each plant gets.
▪ explain sth , reflect sth , suggest sth
PREPOSITION
▪ ~ among
▪
There are few important policy ~s among the main parties.
▪ ~ between
▪
There's a big ~ between reading about skiing and doing it yourself.
▪ ~ from
▪
He was very aware of his ~ from the other children.
▪ ~ in
▪
The ~ in price is not very significant.
▪ ~ of
▪
a crucial ~ of emphasis
▪ ~ with
▪
There is one key ~ with the earlier version of the software.
▪
The ~ with this information service is that it's free.
PHRASES
▪ a … with a ~
▪
If you want a travel destination with a ~, come to Iceland.
▪ all the ~ in the world
▪
There's all the ~ in the world between choosing to do something and being forced to do it.
▪ a great deal of ~ , a lot of ~
▪
The extra money will make a lot of ~ to us.
▪ make all the ~
▪
Just five minutes' exercise a day could make all the ~.
▪ no ~ , not much ~
▪
There's not much ~ between baseball and softball.
2 sum of money in addition to the sum expected
VERB + DIFFERENCE
▪ pay
▪
If you decide on the more expensive model, you can bring this one back and pay the ~.
▪ make up
▪
He didn't have enough money, but his aunt agreed to make up the ~.
▪
He sold the car for more than he'd paid and pocketed the ~.
▪ split ( figurative )
▪
I wanted to leave early and Ian wanted to leave late, so we split the ~ and left at noon.
3 disagreement
ADJECTIVE
▪ irreconcilable , major , serious , sharp
▪ minor , slight
▪ outstanding
▪
These talks aim to resolve the outstanding ~s between the two sides.
VERB + DIFFERENCE
▪ have
▪
They have had some minor ~s, 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 ~s.
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, ~s remain between the groups.
PREPOSITION
▪ ~ as to , ~ over
▪
There were some ~s as to how to deal with the crisis.
PHRASES
▪ a ~ of opinion
▪
She and Luke had a ~ of opinion over how much money they should spend.
▪ have your ~s
▪
Like any married couple, we have our ~s.