差|さsa[0]heiban (flat)

1. noun, noun (suffix)difference; variation
   彼かれの馬うまは３馬身ばしんの差さで勝かった。↗

   His horse won by three lengths.
2. noun, mathdifference

• Synonym差異さいWrittenWritten word for a difference that emerges from comparison, frequent in academic papers; 「差」 mostly refers to a gap in quantity or degree.
• Synonym隔たりへだたりWrittenWritten word for a distance or gap in time, space, or between opinions and feelings, large or small; 「差」 can directly give the result of subtracting numbers.
• Synonym違いちがいNeutralThe broadest everyday word for being different; it can also mean a mistake. 「差」 leans toward comparable amounts: higher or lower, more or less.
• SynonymひらきNeutralA gap that opens up between figures or degrees, as in 「点差の開き」; close in sense to 「差」 but paints the widening more vividly.
• Synonym相違そういWrittenFormal word for things failing to match each other, as in 「意見の相違」; leans toward differences in nature, while 「差」 leans toward quantity.
• Synonym不同ふどうWrittenWritten word for being unlike or uneven, seen mostly in fixed phrases like 「順不同」.
• SynonymギャップNeutralLoanword for a jarring gap or contrast, as in 「理想と現実のギャップ」; very common in conversation.
• Synonym異同いどうWrittenWritten word for points of difference and sameness when comparing texts, opinions, or systems; 「差」 focuses on gaps in quantity or degree.
• Related食い違いくいちがいNeutralFor accounts or opinions that fail to line up, stressing the conflict between them; 「差」 stresses how much higher, lower, more or less one is.
• RelatedずれNeutralA shift or offset in time, position, or understanding, as in 「時差のずれ」; stresses being out of alignment rather than a measured gap.
• Related格差かくさNeutralGap in rank, price, ability, or income, as in 「格差社会」 or 「価格格差」; often carries a sense of inequality, while 「差」 is neutral.
• Related距離きょりNeutralLiterally physical distance, extended to gaps in opinion or emotional closeness; 「差」 covers differences of quantity, degree, or nature, as in 「文化の差」.
• Related溝みぞNeutralLiterally a ditch or groove, extended to a rift between people, as in 「溝が深まる」; stresses relations growing apart.
• Related不一致ふいっちWrittenWritten word for places that should match but do not; it does not express a numerical difference.
• Related不整合ふせいごうWrittenWritten, technical term for things that do not fit together or contradict each other; it does not express a numerical gap.
• Related齟齬そごWrittenFormal written word for things that clash and fail to move smoothly, as in 「齟齬が生じる」; stresses the discord.
• Related径庭けいていWrittenRare written word for a vast difference, seen mostly in 「大きな径庭はない」; in daily speech say 「大差」.
• Related懸隔けんかくWrittenRare written word for being worlds apart; in everyday speech say 「大きな差」.
• Related違い目ちがいめNeutralUncommon word for a point of difference; in daily speech say 「違うところ」 or 「違い」.
• Antonym同どうWrittenAntonym: a prefix meaning the same or the aforementioned, as in 「同社」 or 「同日」; opposed to 「差」 in the same-versus-different contrast, but its use is very narrow.
• Antonym等しいひとしいNeutralAntonym: equal in quantity or degree, as in 「長さが等しい」; the opposite of 「差」, which implies one side is higher or lower.
• Antonym一致いっちNeutralAntonym: a complete match with no discrepancy; the opposite of the difference that 「差」 expresses.

For gaps in quantity or degree use 「差」; for difference in general use 「違い」. 「差異」 and 「相違」 are written-style options for differences in kind. Use 「格差」 for social or economic disparity, 「ギャップ」 for a jarring gap, and 「ずれ」 for a misalignment. For clashing accounts, 「食い違い」; for rifts between people, 「溝」. Antonyms: 「一致」, 「等しい」, and the prefix 「同」.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. （サ）ある数かずから他ほかの数かずを引ひいた残のこりの数かず。
2. （サ）違ちがい。隔へだたり。