Diferente de

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

Please, I need some help with this structure, as I can't find the way to express it in English.
In the next sentences, my first impulse is to say "different than", but I'm confused also with "different from" and "different to".

- Me sugirió usar un navegador diferente del Internet Explorer.
He suggested I used a different browser than/to/from IE.

- El nombre de la planta es diferente del que dijo el vendedor.
The name of the plant is different than/to/from the one the salesman said.


Any help will be highly appreciated.

[chileno]

Originally Posted by AngelicaDeAlquezar

Please, I need some help with this structure, as I can't find the way to express it in English.
In the next sentences, my first impulse is to say "different than", but I'm confused also with "different from" and "different to".

- Me sugirió usar un navegador diferente del Internet Explorer.
He suggested I used a different browser than/to/from IE.

- El nombre de la planta es diferente del que dijo el vendedor.
The name of the plant is different than/to/from the one the salesman said.


Any help will be highly appreciated.

Any will do.

Considera esto en castellano.

....del/al/que el que/del cual...

[hermit]

"Than" and "from" are both fine, and nothing comes to mind where they wouldn't be interchangeable.

"To" would be used in a different grammatical context, like "It felt different to him this time.".

[chileno]

Originally Posted by hermit

"Than" and "from" are both fine, and nothing comes to mind when they wouldn't be interchangeable.

"To" would be used in a different grammatical context, like "It felt different to him this time.".

In this case it would mean "para" in Spanish.

Not so in Angelica's phrase.

[hermit]

Right - "...para...", like "It was different for him..."; "It felt different to him...".

[Awaken]

Originally Posted by AngelicaDeAlquezar

Please, I need some help with this structure, as I can't find the way to express it in English.
In the next sentences, my first impulse is to say "different than", but I'm confused also with "different from" and "different to".

- Me sugirió usar un navegador diferente del Internet Explorer.
He suggested I used a different browser than/to/from IE.

- El nombre de la planta es diferente del que dijo el vendedor.
The name of the plant is different than/to/from the one the salesman said.


Any help will be highly appreciated.

"Than" is acceptable in both cases.

"to" would be incorrect in both cases in American English (British uses "to" though)

"from" would work in the 2nd sentence in conversation, but not in the first in my opinion, but that is to my ear.

In reality, if you use "than" you are safe in my opinion. In most cases, from works just fine too. In real life, if you used "than" or "from" when talking to me, I would know what you meant.


Here is the usage note from dictionary.com:


—Usage note
Although it is frequently claimed that different should be followed only by from, not by than, in actual usage both words occur and have for at least 300 years. From is more common today in introducing a phrase, but than is also used: New York speech is different from (or than ) that of Chicago. Than is used to introduce a clause: The stream followed a different course than the map showed. In sentences of this type, from is sometimes used instead of than; when it is, more words are necessary: a different course from the one the map showed. Regardless of the sentence construction, both from and than are standard after different in all varieties of spoken and written American English. In British English to frequently follows different : The early illustrations are very different to the later ones. The use of different in the sense “unusual” is well established in all but the most formal American English: The décor in the new restaurant is really different.

[poli]

Different to does not work here.

Please remember from is a prepostiton, so, if you use good grammar, a verb should not follow it. In your first sentence from and than are both grammatically correct usages.

Than is a conjunction, so it can be followed by a new verb
in the same sentence. Than is more complicated though, because
it can also be a preposition. In your second sentence than is
best.

By the way, your first sentence should be: He suggested that I use (not used),and I don't know why, but I suspect it's the ghost of the English subjunctive that comes back to haunt us now and then.

Good question!

[Perikles]

Originally Posted by poli

By the way, your first sentence should be: He suggested that I use (not used),and I don't know why, but I suspect it's the ghost of the English subjunctive that comes back to haunt us now and then.

Not a ghost, it's alive and well, and living in the UK.

[poli]

Originally Posted by Perikles

Not a ghost, it's alive and well, and living in the UK.

In the States too, but we don't know it. We're dumb here, but you knew that.

[Perikles]

Originally Posted by poli

We're dumb here, but you knew that.

Would you say Sarah Palin was typical?

[Awaken]

Originally Posted by Perikles

Would you say Sarah Palin was typical?

No. She definitely is not typical. Most Americans are much fatter

[poli]

Originally Posted by Perikles

Would you say Sarah Palin was typical?

Most Americans are better than her, but that's not saying much.

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

Thank you for so many answers. It's pretty clear now... also that subjunctive.

@Perikles: Sorry, I should have known that.

[pjt33]

Para cuantificar un poco las diferencias entre en-gb y en-us, aquí son las cifras del BNC y del COCA.



Así que "different than" vs "different to" parece un shibboleth bastante útil.

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

Interesting... Figures support the note Awaken has quoted about "from" and "than".

Thanks all again.

[Awaken]

This was a good topic! I decided to look into it more to check my own thoughts. It seems the official grammar sources prefer "different from" as the proper use and "different than" as an accepted use in today's speaking (American English only).

So, I guess I am slightly changing my vote. You should use use "different from" to be correct. Although I still stand by the fact that "different than" is still commonly used here in the US as pjt33's numbers suggest.

Some good reading on it: http://www.uhv.edu/ac/newsletters/wr...2005.10.04.htm

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

Fantastic link, Awaken, thank you!