Diff may refer to any of the following:

  1. Alternatively called compare, diff is short for different or difference and describes a program’s ability to show the difference between two or more files. Diff is an invaluable tool in programming as it enables a developer to see what has changed in-between versions.

  2. Diff is used in games like Overwatch to let others know that a team won because they had a better (different) character. For example, someone might say “tank diff,” which indicates the player playing the tank role made the difference in the win.

Using a revision control system like Git is also a good way to help track changes and find differences.

  • See the Linux diff command page for additional information about this command.
  • Compare the differences between two text files.

Using this term is toxic because it’s often used to make one or more players feel like they were the reason a team lost.

Compare, CVS, Dif, Game terms, Programming terms