Hi this is Tutor Nick P and this is Lesson 427. The title of today's lesson
is the difference between variety and diversity. All right. Yeah. This is one
that students sometimes ask about. What's the difference between these two ? So
let's take a look at the note here. Both the words variety and diversity refer to
people or things that are all different of a similar time. Okay. The word variety
focuses on the quality of having a number of different things or more
people is good in the sense that there are more choices. So a lot of times with
variety it's about choices. There's a lot more things you can choose from. For
person to choose from or more things that people can enjoy doing, eating, using
etc. which is also some how related to choices too. Basically. All right. Let's
continue. The word diversity is often used in a political sense to suggest
that having more different types of people you know, of different cultures
races, different sexual orientation, different religions, whatever is better. It is also used to suggest that many different plants or animals in a
particular area is better also. So you know, they're always somehow bragging
about you know, the diversity meaning that somehow having this diversity
somehow makes the place better or makes the city better. All right. Let's continue. The word
diversity has one meaning similar to variety, but they say that the meaning, the
use is a little old. So diversity and variety at one time was closer, but they've
kind of branched in different directions and diversity has gone more the
political way. That it's you know, in reference to again cultures or different
animals or organisms and something. Yeah. And variety is still more about just having
more choices. But here's the similar one. So the word diversity is one meaning
similar to variety, but it is not often used anymore and this would be an
example of it. He has a diversity of materials and
in this sense, you could use variety too. Or he uses, you could probably say he uses a
variety of materials in his art. It could be used kind of that way. This is one sense
where it was it's more similar , but this use of diversity is kind of old and we
don't hear it as much anymore. All right. But let me give you six
examples of the ways that we do commonly hear these two used. So let's look at the
first one. That bookshop has a large variety of books in English. Yes. A lot
of books to look at a lot of choices. A lot of you know, a lot of different
things people could enjoy. Number two. That restaurant puts out a large variety of
fruit for people to choose from. You know, at their buffet. So they have a buffet. They
have many different choices of fruit or it could be desserts. It could be
anything like that. Variety would be the one that we used. We wouldn't say they
have a diversity of fruit and it just sounds weird. Not nowadays. Not really.
Number three here. That mall has a huge variety of shops to buy things from. So
again this is all variety. Things to choose from things that people could
enjoy. Okay. Number four. That city is very cosmopolitan, they have people from a
wide diversity of races, religions and cultures. So this is just the way we use
it in regard to race, religion, things. Like , having people from different places. Number
five. The student body of that university has a wide diversity of students. Yeah.
A student body is like all the students in one particular school or one particular
University. If they broke them down by you know race or religion or something
you'd see that it's very, very mixed. So that university has a wide diversity
of students.The students from many different cultures, religions, races etc.
All right. Number six here. That rain forest has a wide diversity of
animals and plants living in it. Yeah. So we definitely use it in that sense. We
often read articles these days where somehow every time it's mentioned that
somehow they you know, they suggest that it's better
that we have a lot more different animals or insects or plants all in one
area. That it somehow makes it more special. Anyway, I hope you got it.
I hope it was informative. Thank you for your time. Bye-bye.