She's always dieting but never seems to lose any weight. dif • fer / ' fr / verb ( dif fers , dif . fer . ing , dif . fered )
to be different
How does this printer differ from the more expensive one?
dif .fer .ence Ф / (i.irons/ noun
[ count, noncount ]
the way that one thing is not the same as another thing What's the difference between this computer and that cheaper one?
What's the difference in price between these two bikes? Sarah looks exactly like her sister — I can't tell the difference between them.
make a difference
to change or have an effect on someone or something
Marriage made a big difference in her life.
make no difference ; not make any difference
to not change anything; to not be important
It makes no difference to us if the baby is a girl or a boy.
dif .fer .ent Ф / 'drfrent/ adjective
not the same
These two shoes are different sizes! Football is very different from soccer.
many and not the same
They sell 30 different flavors of ice cream.
► dif • fer • ent • ly / ' difrentli / adverb
He's very quiet at home but he behaves differently at
school.
dif • fer •en • ti • ate |awl| / f renjieit /
verb ( dif fer . en . ti . ates , dif . fer . en . ti . at . ing , dif . fer . en . ti . at . ed )
to see or show how things are different
It's hard to differentiate between the male and the female
of the species.
dif .fi .CUlt Ф / difikolt/ adjective
not easy to do or understand a difficult problem
The exam was very difficult.
It's difficult to learn a new language.
—SYNONYM hard —ANTONYM easy
A person who is difficult is not easy to please or will not do what you want
She's a very difficult child.
dif .fi .CUl .ty Ф / 'difiblti/ noun ( plural dif . fi . cul ties )
1 [ count, noncount ] a problem; something that is not easy to do or understand
have difficulty understanding German. My grandfather walks with difficulty now. to get into financial difficulties
[ noncount ] how hard something is
The questions start easy and increase in difficulty.
dig Ф / dig / verb ( digs , dig . ging , dug / dAg / has dug )
to move earth and make a hole in the ground You need to dig the garden before you plant the seeds. They dug a tunnel through the mountain for the new railroad.
dig something up to take something from the ground by digging
They dug up some old coins in their field.
di • gest / di ' d3est / verb ( di . gests, di . gest ing, di . gest ed )
( biology ) When your stomach digests food, it changes it so that your body can use it.
di • ges • tion / dai 'd3estjbn / noun [ noncount ]
Vegetables are usually cooked to help digestion.
di • ges • tive sys • tem / dai ' d3estiv ^m /
noun [ count ]
( biology ) the many parts inside the body that digest food
dig • it / ' did^t / noun [ count ]
( math ) any of the numbers from 0 to 9 What is your ten digit telephone number?
dig • i • tal / ' d^tl / adjective
( computers ) using an electronic system that changes sounds or pictures into numbers before it stores or sends them
a digital camera
A digital clock or watch shows the time in numbers. dig • ni • fied / ' digrafaid / adjective
