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"I am different from/than you." (I am not similar to you.)

Is one usage more correct than the other? Or are they two different usages that could mean two different things?

The answers to the other question cited describe the history of the expressions"different from" and "different than," but not the differences in meaning.

I believe that Nanigashi's and Andrew Leach's comments most nearly approximate the correct answer.

Tom Au
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  • Given your alternate text ("I am not similar to you."), why not "I am different to you"? – KillingTime May 18 '19 at 20:09
  • @KillingTime: I was taught: "I am different from you." The from puts the distance. "To" moves one closer. – Tom Au May 18 '19 at 20:11
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    In American English, "different from" is correct, while "different than" is considered incorrect n a case like this, though many people use it. In my experience, Americans never say "different to" unless they are trying to sound British or have adopted British speech patterns as a result of living in the UK or among Brits elsewhere. – Nanigashi May 18 '19 at 20:14
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    Different from is correct, you would use than in a comparative sentence...more different than... – user 66974 May 18 '19 at 20:15
  • There exists an adjective which is, in some sense, intrinsically comparative, namely different. In some dialects, this adjective can take a than clause: John is different than I thought... – Lucian Sava May 18 '19 at 20:49
  • ... But even in those dialects in which different prohibits a than clause, it still shares properties with compared rather than simple adjectives, Joan W Bresnan says in Syntax of the Comparative Clause Construction in English. – Lucian Sava May 18 '19 at 20:50
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    In British English, different from is more correct than different to — similar to; different from. Different than is non-standard. I think it's going to be difficult to identify "more correct" given that that judgement may be different in different dialects. – Andrew Leach May 18 '19 at 21:02
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    @AndrewLeach I know that is what it says in the OED (It actually says "different from" is "more accepted" - not "more correct") but I remain sceptical. "Different to" sounds more acceptable to my, admittedly rather aged, ear. And like Nanigashi, above I associate "different than" with Americans. Sometimes you just have that feeling that the OED have got it wrong - which I suppose is not inconceivable. – WS2 May 18 '19 at 21:53
  • This question already has an answer here https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/382004/history-of-different-from-different-to-different-than and here https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/516/which-is-correct-is-different-from-or-is-different-than and here https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/183169/different-from-x-different-to-x-different-than – Centaurus May 18 '19 at 22:59

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