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discrepancy

discrepancy

76 5.6
A difference between two things that should be the same, like numbers or stories
  • noun
  • /dɪsˈkrɛpənsi/
translation icon : discrepancia
  • There was a noticeable discrepancy in the witnesses' statements regarding the event.
  • find discrepancies
  • report discrepancies
  • resolve discrepancies

But when you do sense a lie or when you do sense a discrepancy, address it.

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Examples

  • There's a discrepancy in weight distribution... ...between the left and right sides.

  • And I know that there is quite a discrepancy between what they were told and what you said.

  • Well, there is a huge discrepancy between the reality of who I am and that.

  • But when you do sense a lie or when you do sense a discrepancy, address it.

  • In fact, the size of the discrepancy actually increased as the students took more science classes.

    Academic text (1999)
  • From the first moment, I was struck by a certain discrepancy in him.

    Fiction book (2000)
  • Conflict situations involve a discrepancy between the needs or interests of one person and those of another.

    Academic text (1999)
  • Well, one of the possible explanations of this discrepancy could explain this structure.

  • But the reality is there's a lot of discrepancy in wealth today.

  • If you look at eyewitness accounts, you start seeing wide discrepancies of numbers.

Synonyms

gap
vsdiscrepancy
365 1.7

A difference between two groups or amounts

shows disagreement when two items should be equal
inconsistency
vsdiscrepancy
30 4.8

A situation where things do not match or agree

is a specific difference between items that should match
variance
vsdiscrepancy
18 5.5

A difference from what is usual or expected

is a specific disagreement between items expected to match
divergence
vsdiscrepancy
8 6.4

A difference between people or groups in ideas and goals

describes an immediate lack of agreement where sameness was expected
incongruence
vsdiscrepancy
1 8.1

A lack of agreement between things or ideas

emphasizes concrete factual disagreement where equality was expected
diff
vsdiscrepancy
  • Informal
1 8.1

A difference between two things, often between versions of a file

is the more formal label for a specific lack of agreement
mismatching
vsdiscrepancy
4.0

A situation when two things do not agree, for example study results

names the resulting difference after that process

Antonyms

361 1.0

A situation in which people have the same opinion or give their approval

How Different

conflict
397 2.3
contradiction
117 4.3
discrepancy
76 5.6
inconsistency
30 4.8
difference
1.0
variance
  • Specialized
32 7.2

Surface Forms

discrepancy singular
discrepancies plural

Morphology

discrepancy = discrepant (semi-transparent) = discrep + ancy

For a learner who knows 'discrepant', 'discrepancy' is a regular noun meaning the state or instance of being discrepant.

Etymology

Discrepancy comes from Latin parts dis- 'apart' and crepare 'to make a noise'. Imagine two instruments making different sounds — being 'apart in sound' is a simple picture for a difference or lack of agreement when two things that should be the same do not match.