differences

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of difference.

   Cultural differences can lead to misunderstandings between coworkers.

   The report highlighted several differences in pricing across regions.

   Note

   A plural that only some meanings of difference can take. The countable uses pluralize freely: distinguishing features, disagreements, the results of subtraction, and changes that matter to a situation. The bare quality of being different does not. You notice difference between two things, but you list their differences. When you are counting the points of unlikeness, use the plural. When you are naming the abstract quality, keep the singular.

2. 2
   verbobsolete

   Third-person singular simple present of difference.

   Note

   A verb form you will rarely meet outside older writing, because the verb difference, meaning to distinguish or differentiate, is obsolete. It was transitive, so this form always took an object. Today the spelling is almost always read as the plural noun, and a modern writer who wants the verb reaches for distinguishes or differentiates instead.

Showing meanings only. Show all 2