differentiate from vs differentiate between

'Differentiate from' and 'differentiate between' are both acceptable phrases, but they would be used in dissimilar contexts. 'Differentiate from' is used when highlighting the differences between one thing and another, while 'differentiate between' is used when distinguishing among multiple things.

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Editor at TextRanch

Last updated: March 21, 2025 • 5428 views

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English when highlighting the differences between one thing and another.

"differentiate from"

This phrase is used to emphasize the distinctions or contrasts between two things.

Examples:

It's important to differentiate the symptoms of flu from those of a cold.
Can you differentiate the original painting from the copy?
She could easily differentiate her twin daughters from each other.
It's hard to differentiate the two species of birds from a distance.
The new model is easy to differentiate from the previous one.

Show examples from the web [+]

differentiate from ... See also: differentiate, from. McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc .
... different strokes for different folks · differential · differentiate; differentiate between; differentiate from · difficult · difficult is done at once; the impossible takes a ...
Amanpour's Big Get The Daily Beast September 16, 2010. Historical Examples. I found it easy to differentiate from the next species in the field (see below).
... brain to differentiate between various smells. (Definition of differentiate from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press) ...

Alternatives:

distinguish from
discern from
tell apart from
contrast with
separate from

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English when distinguishing among multiple things.

"differentiate between"

This phrase is used to highlight the distinctions or differences among several items or options.

Examples:

It's important to differentiate between the various types of insurance policies.
Can you differentiate between the different shades of blue?
She needs to differentiate between her personal and professional life.
The teacher asked the students to differentiate between fact and opinion.
It's crucial to differentiate between the symptoms of allergies and a cold.

Show examples from the web [+]

1. to recognize the difference between people or things in any combination. ( Usually refers to two entities.) In your painting, I cannot differentiate between the ...
1.1 [ no object ] (differentiate between) Identify differences between (two or more things or people): he is unable to differentiate between fantasy and reality.
For example, if the light is dim at the party, you might find it hard to differentiate between the spicy bean dip and the chocolate sauce. You can see different in ...
... of DIFFERENTIATE. The only thing that differentiates the twins is the color of their eyes. <it was hard at first to differentiate between the two styles of music> ...

Alternatives:

distinguish between
discern between
tell apart between
contrast between
separate between

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differentiate from vs differentiate between

"differentiate from"

"differentiate between"

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