DuySa

40 Synonyms for “Different”

Posted: 14 Jun 2013 09:30 PM PDT

Looking for a different way to say “different”? Here are forty more or less distinct synonyms, along with their sometimes similar, sometimes disparate meanings.
1. Alternate: arranged or occurring in turns, or see alternative; also, every other (also a verb)
2. Alternative: referring to a choice; also, apart from the conventional or usual
3. Assorted: consisting of different kinds
4. Differing: see distinct, or changing from one case or situation to another; also, disagreeing
5. Discernable: able to be recognized as different; also detectable or recognizable
6. Discrete: see distinct
7. Disparate: see distinct, or incompatibly different
8. Dissimilar: not alike
9. Distant: different in kind; also, separated or far away from, going a long way, or far behind, or reserved in behavior, or distracted
10. Distinct: separate, or readily distinguishable; also, notable or unmistakable
11. Divergent: differing from each other or from a standard
12. Divers: see various (also an unrelated and differently pronounced plural form of diver)
13. Diverse: see distinct, or unlike
14. Eclectic: Drawn from various sources, or see heterogeneous
15. Heterogeneous: consisting of dissimilar ingredients or parts
16. Idiosyncratic: having a distinguishable quality; also, eccentric, or hypersensitive
17. Indiscriminate: see heterogeneous or motley; also, random, unrestrained, or careless about distinction
18. Individual: see separate; also, pertaining to an individual or individuality (also a noun)
19. Kitchen-sink: consisting of noticeably different parts; also, referring to the degrading aspects of poverty
20. Magpie: collected indiscriminately; also, acquisitive (also, a person who collects indiscriminately or chatters, or the bird whose behavior inspires these usages)
21. Manifold: see diverse or various; also, many, or consisting of various qualities (also an unrelated noun)
22. Miscellaneous: see diverse
23. Mixed: consisting of more than one kind (also a verb)
24. Motley: incongruously diverse; also, having different-colored markings
25. Multifarious: see diverse or various
26. Particular: see distinct; also, detailed, specific, or exacting or meticulous (also, in plural form, a noun)
27. Peculiar: distinctive; also, unusual or abnormal (this negative connotation predominates, so use with caution)
28. Piebald: consisting of incongruous parts; also, consisting of different colors (especially black and white)
29. Promiscuous: consisting of all types, or not restricted to one type; also, casual, irregular, or tending to have multiple sexual partners (because of this provocative connotation, promiscuous is rarely used in other senses)
30. Raggle-taggle: see motley
31. Ragtag: see motley; also, ragged or slovenly
32. Respective: see separate
33. Separate: not similar; also, autonomous, detached, or individual (also a verb)
34. Several: see distinct and separate; also, exclusive or relating separately, or a few
35. Single: unlike any other; also, lone, unmarried, or celibate, or honest or exclusive, or designed for one, or having only one item or part, or undivided
36. Singular: distinctive; also, exceptional or unusual, or pertaining to a single thing
37. Sundry: miscellaneous or various
38. Variant: varying slightly; also, demonstrating disagreement or variety (also a noun)
39. Varied: see diverse and various; also, having different-colored markings (also a verb)
40. Various: unlike, or of differing kinds, or see separate; also, individual, or having a number of qualities, or an indefinite number more than one
Note, however, that different is often redundant, as in “They came up with many different ideas” (do you need to specify that the ideas they came up with were not identical?), so consider whether it is necessary to replace the deleted word at all.
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Confusion of Subjective and Objective Pronouns

Posted: 11 Jun 2013 09:32 PM PDT

How do you decide which form of a pronoun to use, as in the choices of the wording in “John is as fast as him” and “John is as fast as he”? Knowing the varieties of pronouns will help you choose the correct form.

A subject pronoun is one used as the subject of a sentence, as in “He is right” or “I am amazed.” (Subject pronouns include I, you, he, she, it, we, and they.) Subject pronouns may also rename the subject, following a copular verb (one that is a form of “to be”): “It is I who left the chair there.”

A subject pronoun should also be used for such sentences as “It might have been she,” though an object pronoun is used in its place almost invariably in casual speech and often in writing.

Object pronouns (me, you, him, her, it, us, and them), by contrast, are used to identify the object of a sentence, as in “Mary gave it to her” and “The tourists went to see them.” (Notice that you and it can serve as both subject and object pronouns.) Object nouns are used with all the three types of objects: “The Smiths invited us” (direct object), “The Smiths gave us our dish back” (indirect object), and “The Smiths gave a party for us” (object of a preposition).

Should a sentence read, “I am older than her” or “I am older than she”? In a statement of comparison that uses as or than and does not end with a copular verb, temporarily add one to test the correct type of pronoun: “I am older than her is” does not sound right, but “I am older than she is” does, so the correct word in this sentence is she. (Therefore, the correct sentence in the pair of examples in the first paragraph of this post — in formal writing, at least — is “John is as fast as he.”)

Note, however, that what appears to be a sentence with an incorrect form of a pronoun can be correct when it means something else. For example, “She fell asleep before him” could mean that the woman fell asleep in front of someone, not earlier than someone, in which case the statement is correct.

What if the sentence refers to more than one person? “Joe and I were invited to the party” is correct, because I is part of the subject (“Joe and I”). But “The last people at the party were Joe and I” is wrong because here, despite its location at the end of the sentence, “Joe and I” is the subject. Just as you’d write, “The last person at the party was me,” you’d refer to the last two partygoers by writing, “The last people at the party were Joe and me.” (When I checked this post for spelling and grammar, Microsoft Word’s checking system recommended that I replace me in “The last person at the party was me” with I. Sigh.)

Possessive pronouns (mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, and theirs) signal possession or relationship and, unlike nouns in possessive form, never include apostrophes. They take the same form whether in the subjective position or the objective position: “That is hers. Yours is here.”

Reflexive pronouns (myself, himself, herself, itself, themselves, ourselves, yourself, and yourselves) refer to something already mentioned (“The machine appeared to start by itself”) or implied (Suit yourselves”). “The directions applied only to myself” is wrong because the person indicated by myself is not explicitly or implicitly referred to. (The correct wording is “The directions applied only to me.”) However, “I followed the directions myself” is correct because myself refers to the subject I.

What if the pronoun is part of a dependent clause (one that must be part of a sentence because it cannot stand on its own)? As a test, temporarily omit the conditional word (although, because, since, if, or when): In the case of “Because you asked her so nicely, you may go with them,” ignore because. “You asked her so nicely” correctly uses her rather than she in the object, so her is also correct in the full sentence.