Wednesday, June 10, 2015

word usage - Can we use "from", "to", "than" interchangeably in this structure "different (from/to/than somebody/something)"?


see this structure:


different (from/to/than somebody/something): not the same as somebody/something; not like somebody/something else. Ex: "American English is significantly different from British English." Source


So, can we say:


American English is significantly different to British English.


or


American English is significantly different than British English.



They sound pretty weird to me.



Answer




American English is significantly different to British English.



The use of the preposition "to" after "different" is common in informal writing or spoken English in BE. It's not used in AE.



American English is significantly different than British English.



The use of "than" is chiefly used in AE; it's not common in BE.




American English is significantly different from British English.



The use of "from" is very common in both AE and BE.


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