different

Universal Words adjective 1 ~ (from / to / than sb/sth) not the same as sb/sth; not like sb/sth else: American English is significantly different from British English. * (BrE) It's very different to what I'm used to. * (AmE) He saw he was no different than anybody else. * It's different now than it was a year ago. * People often give very different accounts of the same event. * My son's terribly untidy; my daughter's no different. * The room looks different without the furniture. * Now he spoke in a different and kinder voice. OPPSIMILAR 2 [onlybeforenoun] separate and individual: She offered us five different kinds of cake. * The programme was about customs in different parts of the country. * They are sold in many different colours. * I looked it up in three different dictionaries. 3 [notusuallybeforenoun] (informal) unusual; not like other people or things: 'Did you enjoy the play?' 'Well, it was certainly different!' differently adverb: Boys and girls may behave differently. * The male bird has a differently shaped head. IDIOMS a different kettle of fish (informal) a completely different situation or person from the one previously mentioned moreatCOMPLEXION, KNOWv., MATTERn., SINGv., TELL ______________________________ BRITISH/AMERICAN different from / to / than Different from is the most common structure in both BrE and AmE. Different to is also used in BrE: Paul's very different from/to his brother * This visit is very different from/to last time. In AmE people also say different than: Your trains are different than ours. * You look different than before. Before a clause you can also use different from (and different than in AmE): She looked different from what I'd expected. * She looked different than (what) I'd expected. ______________________________