The story
- Proto-Indo-European*dwóh₁
- Proto-Indo-European*trísinflu.
- Proto-Indo-European*d(w)is-
- Proto-Italic*dis-
- Latindis-
- Proto-Indo-European*bʰer-
- Proto-Indo-European*bʰéreti
- Proto-Italic*ferō
- Latinferō
- Latindifferō
- Latindifferēns
- Old Frenchdifferent
- Middle Englishdifferent
- English todaydifferent
From Middle English different, from Old French different, from Latin differēns, present active participle of differō (“to differ”). See also differ. Mostly supplanted native Old English ungelic in common usage, which lives on as unalike in Modern English.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.