disparity

American  

[dih-spar-i-tee] / dɪˈspær ɪ ti /

noun

plural

disparities

1. lack of similarity or equality; inequality; difference.

   a disparity in age; disparity in rank.

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disparity British  

/ dɪˈspærɪtɪ /

noun

1. inequality or difference, as in age, rank, wages, etc

2. dissimilarity

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Related Words

See difference.

Other Word Forms

• nondisparity noun

Etymology

Origin of disparity

First recorded in 1545–55; from Middle French desparite, from Late Latin disparitās; equivalent to dis- ¹ + parity ¹

Example Sentences

Without careful planning, expanded use could worsen existing health disparities among people living with obesity.

From Science Daily

For baseball, he believes, a salary cap would be a good thing, given the gaping revenue disparities among teams.

From Los Angeles Times

The researchers pointed out the disparity between these disappointing results and how AI chatbots score extremely highly on medical benchmarks and exams, blaming the gap on a communication breakdown.

From Barron's

The disparity is a common point of frustration for not only creators and the talent agencies that represent them but also some marketing executives trying to convince their companies to do more with YouTube.

From The Wall Street Journal

Simply splitting everything 50/50 may be simple in theory, and it may still work in your situation, but it isn’t always equitable if there’s a large disparity in income.

From MarketWatch

Related Words

• difference
• discrepancy
• distinction
• divergence
• gap
• imbalance
• inequality
• variation