Differentiation

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /dɪf.əˌɹɛn.ʃiˈeɪ.ʃən/

Definitions

1. The process of identifying unique characteristics allows for the distinction between various subjects or items based on their diverse attributes
2. The act of distinguishing and categorizing entities by recognizing their unique differences involves analyzing specific traits and variations present in each case
3. A method of establishing distinctions among various subjects occurs when unique characteristics and qualities are identified and compared systematically

Etymology: The word "differentiation" is built in layers, and the core of it is a Latin verb meaning "carry apart." Latin "differō" combined "dis-", meaning "apart," with "ferō", meaning "carry" or "bear," so its original sense was physical: to carry things in different directions. Only later did it come to mean "to differ" in the sense of being unlike, and that is the meaning English inherited through Old French and Middle English as "differen" and "differer." The modern word is a much later construction. English took "differentiate" from New Latin "differentiātus," a scholarly coinage, and then added the suffix "-ion," which turns a verb of action into a noun for the process. So "differentiation" names the act of making things distinct, a sense that grew out of the older idea of carrying or pulling apart.

Synonyms: distinction, discrimination, separation, divergence, variation

Antonyms: uniformity, sameness, similarity, consistency, identity