Meanings
alternative vive la difference
- humorousoftenUsed to express appreciation of diversity, especially between the sexes; sometimes referring to cultural diversity, and more rarely to diversity of opinion, as in "let's agree to disagree".
Synonyms: long live the difference
Synonyms & antonyms
phraseUsed to express appreciation of diversity, especially between the sexes; sometimes referring to cultural diversity, and more rarely to diversity of opinion, as in "let's agree to disagree".
Origin
Borrowed from French, literally “long live the difference”, from vive (“long live”) + la (“the”) + différence (“difference, diversity”). Although correct and unremarkable French, it is not a stock phrase in French as it is in English.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
vive la différence. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/vive%20la%20diff%C3%A9rence
“vive la différence.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/vive%20la%20diff%C3%A9rence. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “vive la différence,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/vive%20la%20diff%C3%A9rence.
Source: vive la différence on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.