Suggestions and questions are welcome and encouraged.
PUB DATE | WEEK | TITLE | SYNOPSIS | THEMES | LINKS TO THIS CONTEST | WINNER | LINKS TO RESULTS OF THIS CONTEST (usually published 2-4 Weeks later) |
March 3, 1996 | 155 | COMPARISON SHOPPING | Explain the difference between any two of the above items. | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Chuck Smith | Text file | Contest image |
June 9, 1996 | 169 | DIFF'RENT JOKES | Tell us the difference between any two of the provided items. | DIF | Text file | Contest image | David "Stockton" Smith | Text file | Contest image |
January 5, 1997 | 199 | WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE? | Tell us the difference between any two of the provided items. | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Rob Klotz | Text file | Contest image |
June 28, 1998 | 276 | SPIT THE DIFFERENCE | Tell us the difference between any two of the provided items. | DIF | Text file | Russell Beland | Text file |
August 2, 1998 | 281 | CALCULATE THE ODDS | Tell us which of the two provided items does not belong with the other two, and why. | DIF | Text file | J. Larry Schott | Text file |
May 20, 2001 | 402 (LXIX) | Spitting the Difference | Tell us the difference between any two of the provided items. | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Jim Pond | Text file | Contest image |
April 28, 2002 | 451 (CXVIII) | Make Your Pix | Which two of the provided cartoons are related, and how? | CAR DIF | Text file | Dan Steinberg | Text file |
August 11, 2002 | 466 (CXXXIII) | Spit the Difference | Tell us the difference between any two of the provided items. | DIF | Text file | Chris Doyle | Text file |
May 9, 2004 | 557 | Oh, for Namesakes! | Take two people, real or fictional, who share some element of their names and explain the difference between them. | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Brendan Beary | Text file | Contest image |
June 20, 2004 | 563 | Take Two | Take any two of the provided items and explain how they resemble or differ from each other. | DIF | Text file | Mark Young | Text file |
April 10, 2005 | 605 | Truly Stupendous Ideas | Name two people with the same initials (the people can be living or dead, real or fictional) and explain how they are similar or different. | DIF LET | Text file | Mark Eckenwiler | Text file |
September 18, 2005 | 628 | You Gotta Have Connections | Choose any two or more items from the provided truly random list and describe how they are alike or different. | DIF | Text file | David "Stockton" Smith | Text file |
January 14, 2007 | 697 | We Beg You To Differ | Take any two items from the truly random provided list and explain why they are different or why they are similar. | DIF | Text file | Dave Komornik | Text file |
November 3, 2007 | 738 | So What's To Liken? | Take any two items from the utterly random list above and explain how they are different or how they are similar. | DIF | Text file | Chuck Smith | Text file |
March 1, 2008 | 754 | Canny Similarities | Cite a humorous "uncanny similarity" between any two of the very different people listed above. | DIF | Text file | Larry Yungk | Text file |
June 13, 2009 | 821 | Spit the Difference | How are any of the items on the list above alike or different? | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Dan Ramish | Text file | Contest image |
August 21, 2010 | 883 | Same difference | Choose any two items from the list above and explain why they are alike or are different from each other. | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version | Craig Dykstra | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version |
August 28, 2011 | 934 | Same difference | Explain how any two items in the provided list are similar or different. | DIF | Text file | Rob Huffman | Text file |
May 20, 2012 | 972 | Trends and neighbors | Choose any two items on the provided list and explain how they are alike or different. | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Bird Waring | Text file | Contest image |
September 30, 2012 | 990 | Indecent relations | Pair two people, real or fictional, who have the same last name; say how they're alike or different, or something they might do (even in fantasy), as a pair. | DIF | Text file | Post e-version | Robert Schechter | Text file | Post e-version |
May 19, 2013 | 1022 | What's the diff? | Explain how any two of the provided items are alike or different. | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version | Michael Gips | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version |
March 9, 2014 | 1063 | Same difference | Take any two items from the provided list and explain how they're similar or different. | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version | Dave Letizia | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version (pub 4-6-14) Text file | Contest image | Post e-version (pub 4-27-14) |
May 11, 2014 | 1071 | A pair of threes | Choose two or three entities represented by a single three-letter combination at bit.ly/3letterabs and say how they are alike or different. | LET DIF | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version | Rob Huffman | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version |
April 19, 2015 | 1120 | Celebrating our differences | Each of the provided 17 items appeared in a different Style Invitational compare/contrast contest from 1996 to 2014. Explain how any two of them are alike or different or otherwise linked. (Conversational text) | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version | Jaclyn Yamada | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version |
March 20, 2016 | 1167 | So what's to liken? | Take any two items from the provided list and explain how they're similar or different, or connect them some other way. (Conversational text) | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version | Mike Ostapiej | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version |
April 23, 2017 | 1224 | We beg you to differ | Explain how any two (or more) items in the provided list are the same or different, or otherwise connected. (Conversational text) | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version | Melissa Balmain | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version |
June 17, 2018 | 1284 | Same difference | Explain how any two of the items in the provided list are similar, different or otherwise linked. | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version | Jerome Uher | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version |
September 8, 2019 | 1348 | Same difference | Explain humorously how any two or more of the provided items are alike, different or otherwise connected. | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version | Jon Ketzner | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version |
June 28, 2020 | 1390 | 'Same difference' for a new time | Explain how any two of the items in the provided list are similar, different or otherwise linked. (Conversational text) | DIF | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version | Jesse Frankovich | Text file | Contest image | Post e-version |