different/differing

[Ruth]

Okay. 'Nother poem.

clocks stopped at different/differing hours

Which?

[Novi]

different hours... I'm still thinking about the reason why I didn't choose differing

[David]

different--not the same
differing--disagreeing

It's what linguists call an "aspect" distinction. Things that are "different" differ over an extended period of time. Things that are "differing" differ for the moment.

So, my kids are differing about who gets to ride shotgun. They are different because one is dark-haired and the other light.

[Ruth]

Thanks David. That makes different the better word. But differing sounds like more fun, as if the clocks were in an argument.

However, I solved it, and made a better poem by actually saying what hours the clocks were saying.

[Ken, Moderator]

My clocks beg to differ.