Diaphor

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A difference or distinction between two things, a term borrowed from Greek to describe variation or contrast in meaning or nature
2. The quality of being different or distinct from something else, used for a divergence between two items or ideas
3. A variation or dissimilarity that separates one thing from another, especially in philosophical or technical discussion

Etymology: "Diaphor" is a Greek noun, "diaphora," meaning difference, variation, or distinction. It comes from "diapherein," to carry across or bear through, built from "dia-" (across, apart) and "pherein" (to carry or bear), the same verb root that gives English "-phore" in words like "metaphor" and "semaphore." The literal picture is of something carried apart from something else, which is how the Greek sense of difference arose. In English the word is rare and mostly technical or literary, and it tends to appear where a writer wants a precise term for divergence between two things, such as in discussions of variation between texts or measurements. Its close relative "diaphora" appears in classical Greek philosophy, where it marked the difference that separates one thing from another.