the difference is that vs the only difference is that

Both phrases are correct, but they are used in slightly different contexts. 'The difference is that' is a more general statement indicating a distinction between two things, while 'The only difference is that' emphasizes that there is just one distinction between the two things being compared.

Last updated: March 23, 2024 • 2970 views

This phrase is correct and commonly used to indicate a distinction between two things.

"the difference is that"

This phrase is used to point out a specific contrast or dissimilarity between two things or situations.

Show examples from the web [+]

But the difference is that you agree with me.
Now the difference is that I see you.
The difference is that you are not alone.
The difference is that you don't pay taxes.
The difference is that this time fate decide.
The difference is that you will be president, and I'm just catching a ship.
But the difference is that this time around, in my opinion, the method has worked perfectly.
But the difference is that she thought hers had returned, that they were beckoning her.
The difference is that Jay was affected by it.
The difference is that most people don't kill their husbands with an axe.
The difference is that the Israeli military is still stronger.
The difference is that all men go eventually, but I go six o'clock tomorrow morning.
Woman: The difference is that the Israeli military is still stronger.
The difference is that those oil crises were global while this is very clearly an EU crisis.
The difference is that I know the difference between an idea and a fact.
The difference is that when you made yours, the people that you love forgave you.
The difference is that I can take a deep look the other way every time you cross me on this ship... and you can't.
The difference is that, in a binary system, when winds from the two stars collide, gases are compressed, and dust and soot are created.
The difference is that we control our daydreams.
The difference is that when you lost the ticket you say to yourself, I'm not paying twice for the same thing.

Alternatives:

the distinction is that
the contrast is that

This phrase is correct and is used to emphasize that there is just one distinction between the two things being compared.

"the only difference is that"

Use this phrase when you want to highlight that there is only one specific contrast or dissimilarity between two things or situations.

Show examples from the web [+]

Businesses will continue to receive payments; the only difference is that they will no longer be obliged to grow tobacco, and I believe that makes good sense.
The Mail Reply follows the same lines as posting a reply in a newsgroup; the only difference is that a mail reply is sent directly to the author and does not appear in any newsgroup.
The only difference is that she keeps tadpoles.
The only difference is that they can see the bars... that deny them all hope of escape.
The only difference is that the European monsters do not have to worry about capital punishment.
The only difference is that they do not pay a contribution and do not have a right to vote.
The only difference is that post-Hitler Germany said sorry.
The only difference is that reality is surpassing fiction.
The only difference is that someone gave him a nuclear arsenal to play with.
The only difference is that, for us, they need to be fresh.
The only difference is that case was 100 years ago And the murders took place in London.
The only difference is that each time, you're a little bit more emotionally prepared for it.
The only difference is that when I do it, we win football games.
The only difference is that now you're only working with 21 percent oxygen.
The only difference is that I was elected and you were not.
The only difference is that they received him in secret and not in the transparency which we have always tried to apply to our own external policies.
The only difference is that this South... Delhi circus tent is marrying him... instead of that villager from Haryana.
The only difference is that they became famous and I became a marine.
The only difference is that Hitler lost the war and Stalin won the war.
The only difference is that they find the doors of Parliament wide open to them, while the workers are not allowed near them.

Alternatives:

the sole difference is that
the single distinction is that

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the difference is that vs the only difference is that