In my job as copyeditor I notice that writers tend to overuse different when they should write various instead.
Different, as you know, means that something is not the same as something else. One thing is different from another thing, or two or more things are different, not alike.
Various implies that there is a variety among things; there are several different variants of something. Various is used before a plural noun about things that are of the same type but not all of exactly the same kind.
Usually, the preposition from comes after different: Her latest novel is very different from anything she has written before. However, some writers prefer than after different. I would use than only with the comparative form: These two are more different than those. Different than is common in US English. Sometimes I also see different to, which seems to be more common in British English, but you should avoid using different to in writing.
I recommend that you write different when you want to emphasise that there really is a difference. And write from instead of than or to! Write various to indicate that there are several types that are different from each other, that there is a variety of things.
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