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noun

discrepancy

dih-SKREP-un-see

Hear it your way
  1. 01Understand
  2. 02Hear
  3. 03Distinguish
  4. 04See it used
  5. 05Choose how it lands
In plain English

A difference between two things that should match or agree.

Another useful meaning: A mismatch that needs to be explained.
Why it is worth having

It puts a hard fact on the table before anyone has to use a word like dishonest.

Not quite mistake

A mistake says someone got it wrong. A discrepancy says only that two records do not match, and leaves who and why for later.

Words it naturally keeps company with
explain the discrepancyan unexplained discrepancya discrepancy offlag a discrepancy
See it living in different rooms
work“There is a discrepancy of four thousand between the invoice and what we actually shipped.”
conversation“I noticed the discrepancy in the dates and decided to ask him before I asked anyone else.”
argument“You keep calling it rounding. Rounding is not a discrepancy that runs the same way for eleven months.”
How the wording lands

A trusted colleague's expense claims do not match their receipts and you have to raise it.

Meaning held still: Get an explanation while leaving room for a genuine error.

Direct
“There is a discrepancy between the March claim and the receipts. Can you walk me through it?”

It lands as: States the fact and asks for an account without naming a cause.

Tradeoff: The neutral word can feel colder than an accusation, because they cannot tell what you already believe.
Warm authority
“March does not add up on my side, and I would rather hear it from you than work it out alone.”

It lands as: Signals that you still treat them as the source of truth rather than the subject of an inquiry.

Tradeoff: The friendliness reads as a warning to anyone who already knows what you have found.
Restrained
“Before I file March, I want to check two lines with you.”

It lands as: Offers a private chance to correct it while the process is still reversible.

Tradeoff: Understating it invites a casual answer, and the real question never gets asked.

Watch for: A discrepancy is a gap between two records that should agree. Two people holding different opinions do not have a discrepancy.

First met in The Reconciliation. Saving keeps that example with the word.

Words worth having

Build a vocabulary you can actually use.

Choose what the word should help you do, distinguish its shade, and practise how it changes a sentence.

02The promise

Useful words, not ornament.

Every word should make a thought easier to name, a sentence easier to shape, or another person easier to understand.

  1. 1
    Understand

    Begin with plain English and a sound you can follow.

  2. 2
    Distinguish

    See why a familiar nearby word is not quite the same.

  3. 3
    Use

    Meet the word in more than one kind of sentence.

  4. 4
    Choose

    Hold the intention still and notice how the wording changes its landing.

“The word is learned
when it becomes available.”

Opening or saving is never called mastery. Evidence begins only when you recall and use the word.