Basic Details
Word: Discrepancy
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: A difference between two things that should be the same, such as two totals or two stories that do not match.
Synonyms: difference, mismatch, gap, inconsistency
Antonyms: agreement, match
How to Spell Discrepancy
Syllables: dis - crep - an - cy
Tricky part: The ending is ancy, not ency, and students often write discrepency. The start is dis, not des.
Watch out for: discrepency, descrepancy, discrapancy
Memory tip: Think of vacancy and infancy: discrepancy ends in the same ancy. Say it slowly as dis-crep-an-cy to hear the a.
Usage Examples
Example 1: The teacher found a discrepancy between the marks on the paper and those in the register.
Example 2: There is a discrepancy of twenty rupees between the bill and the money in the box.
Example 3: Police noticed a discrepancy in the two stories the witnesses told.
Fun Fact
Discrepancy comes from the Latin discrepare, to sound different, built on crepare, to creak or rattle.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell-o-Spell
Choose the incorrectly spelt word:
a) frequency
b) vacancy
c) discrepency
d) emergency
Show answer
c) discrepency. Frequency and emergency do end in ency, but discrepancy ends in ancy.
Word Connection
Choose the synonym of the word: discrepancy
a) harmony
b) mismatch
c) agreement
d) balance
Show answer
b) mismatch. A mismatch is when two things do not agree, which is a discrepancy.
Mingle-Mangle
Form a meaningful word from the jumbled letters:
yccasepnrid
a) discrepancy
b) discretion
c) discovery
d) description
Show answer
a) discrepancy. Only discrepancy has a y and two c's, just like the jumbled letters.
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
discreppancy
a) r
b) n
c) p
d) c
Show answer
c) p. There is only one p in discrepancy.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. If two lists have a discrepancy, they ____.
a) are both very long
b) are exactly the same
c) do not match
d) were written by one person
Show answer
c) do not match
2. Which is an example of a discrepancy?
a) a bill says three apples, but the bag has two
b) a bag of three apples costs ninety rupees
c) an apple falls from a tree
d) two friends buy the same apples
Show answer
a) a bill says three apples, but the bag has two
