discrepancy

[ dih-skrep-uhn-see ]

noun

, plural dis·crep·an·cies

1. the state or quality of being discrepant or in disagreement, as by displaying an unexpected or unacceptable difference; inconsistency:

   The discrepancy between the evidence and his account of what happened led to his arrest.

   Synonyms: variance, contrariety, discordance, disagreement, incongruity

2. an instance of difference or inconsistency:

   There are certain discrepancies between the two versions of the story.

   Synonyms: variation

discrepancy

/ dɪˈskrɛpənsɪ /

noun

1. a conflict or variation, as between facts, figures, or claims

Usage

Discrepancy is sometimes wrongly used where disparity is meant. A discrepancy exists between things which ought to be the same; it can be small but is usually significant. A disparity is a large difference between measurable things such as age, rank, or wages

Word History and Origins

Origin of discrepancy¹

First recorded in 1615–25; from Latin discrepantia, from discrepant- (stem of discrepāns “sounding discordant”; discrepant ) + -ia -y ³( def )

Synonym Study

See difference.

Example Sentences

An Arizona voter roll discrepancy, discovered just weeks ago, further threatened to sow distrust in this year’s election.

From Los Angeles Times

A similar assessment from HarrisX revealed a discrepancy of more than 8% of votes "pointing to possible voting irregularities".

From BBC

"It was not until a year after our loss that we learned there was a discrepancy between the care in Northern Ireland and mainland UK," said Emily.

From BBC

The discrepancy in the characterisation of their conversation comes with Israel poised to carry out a retaliatory strike against Iran for its 1 October ballistic missile attack on Israel.

From BBC

“Out of the 14,093 acres burned in 2019, only 340 acres were on private lands. This discrepancy is surprising when considering that 70 percent of the almost 17 million acres of forests in Pennsylvania are privately owned.”

From Salon

Related Words

• difference
• disparity
• distinction
• divergence
• error
• inconsistency
• miscalculation
• variation