Public Services and Procurement Canada
Symbol of the Government of Canada

Institutional Links

 

Important notice

Writing Tips has been archived and won’t be updated before it is permanently deleted.

For the most up-to-date content, please consult Writing Tips Plus, which combines content from Writing Tips and The Canadian Style. And don’t forget to update your bookmarks!

Search Canada.ca
To begin your search, go to the alphabetical index below and click on the first letter of the word you are searching for.

differ from, differ in, differ with

When differ means “be unlike,” it is followed by the preposition from.

  • The twins differ from each other only in height.

When differ means “disagree,” it is followed usually by the preposition with or sometimes by the preposition from.

  • I differed with Bill about our bike club’s budget.
  • Denzil’s answers to the math questions differed from Samantha’s.

When two subjects are being compared, their elements of difference are introduced by the phrasal verb differ in.

  • The east and west coasts of Canada differ greatly in climate.