Do you say "different from", or "different to", or "different than"? I grew up in Canada, and we'd say, for example, "Cats are different from dogs." I've heard people from the UK say "Cats are different to dogs." Yesterday I heard somebody say "Cats are different than dogs." I don't think I'd heard that construction before. Which do you use? And which is more correct?
I may use "different than" in dialogue, but I'd go with the correct "different from" in most cases. A google search turns up a lot about this subject, but it's also listed in several style books. The Elements of Style lists "different than" under their "Words and Expressions Commonly Misused":
I think - not sure - but I probably use all three...in speech at least. Brits use 'to' a lot. Absolutely no problem with it. Technically fine.
In Britain, and for international English grammar tests, only 'different from' OR 'different to' is acceptable. 'Different TO' is usual use, especially in academic writing. 'Different than' is definitely considered substandard or idiomatic use. It is something that comes up in tests all the time, contrasted with 'the same AS'.
figures!... you folks also drive on the wrong side of the road and have useless 'u's in a lot of your words... ;-)
Here in America I would use "different than" for writing and in real life. As would most Americans I would assume.
Pulled this off an American writing sight; so it at least explains why we use "than." "Use than as a word indicating comparison. When you are talking about a noun (thing, person, place or concept) being more, less, better, cooler, dumber, etc. in relation to another noun, the word than is necessary."
Interesting… “from” sounds right to me, though after listening to y’all I’m not entirely sure it’s the correct term anymore. I’m Canadian, and very rarely do I hear anyone use “than” and certainly not “to”.
Found an article that touches on this a little bit more. Definitely worth checking out. "Different from versus Different than" by David Felts. Google's Ngram Viewer also shows some interesting results between "different from, different than, and different to."
Be careful: those examples are comparative ADJECTIVES, not comparing using 'different' and then the noun. We say: 'I have a nicer/bigger/more expensive/colder etc (adjective) house THAN yours' (of course, here we need than) BUT 'My house is a different size/style/design (noun) to/from yours.'
Fowler's Modern English Usage (pretty much the UK English pedant's Bible) says that "different from" is generally regarded as the correct form in British English, but that the suggestion that "to" or "than" shouldn't be used is "not supportable in the face of past and present evidence or logic". It does acknowledges, though, that "than" has risen in favour in the USA whilst falling in favour in the UK, and now "does not form part of the regular language in British". It suggests that variation between "from" and "to" can be used to avoid clumsy repetition: "The American theatre, which is suffering from a different malaise to ours, ...". That's probably not an issue in the USA, where I think they could simply drop the "from". The book is quite scathing about Mamma's suggestion that "different to" makes no sense, by the way.
Not the same sort of comparison, though. They're all gradable, but different strictly speaking isn't.
Especially the comparison between "different from" and "different to" on the US corpus. It seems that "different to" was the more common one there until the 1930s.
I've told you before, we drive on the correct side of the road -- the opposite side to the oncoming traffic. Do you think we should drive on the same side as the oncoming traffic? Oh, and look up "U versus non-U English" and you'll find that non-U English is decidedly lower class than U English.
Honestly, I have read and heard people use all three. And I would not stumble or think anything of it if I read or heard any of three either. But, for better or worse, I predominantly hear "than" in America.
Which is interesting, because it's not what the Google nGram suggests. That shows "different from" as more than seven times more frequent than "different than" in US English. I wonder whether this is a difference between speech and writing or a regional thing where you are? That could be a useful thing for a writer to know, but I don't know how you would find out.
It could possibly be a west coast thing. Or maybe even just an age group thing. But, like I said, I have heard people say all three here. I guess it just depends on personal preference.
I grew up in Southern California, where I am now, and I hear "different than" more often. But I lived in the midwest for 15 years, and heard "different from" quite a bit there (a mix of the two actually).
Now that I think about it, when I lived in Boise for seven years I heard "from" more as well. So maybe it is a Southern California thing?
I'm in America (some time in the Midwest, some time just barely in the South, some time on the East coast, and some on the West coast) and I've almost always heard "different from". I've seen "different than" occasionally in dialect in writing or on the Internet, but I don't know if I've ever actually heard anyone say it.
