Coherence

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /kəʊˈhɪəɹ.ən(t)s/

Definitions

1. The quality of being logical, consistent, and forming a unified whole where all parts connect clearly and make sense together
2. The state of being understandable, unified, and logically connected so that all elements support a clear and consistent idea or argument
3. A characteristic of ideas or concepts being logically ordered, harmonious, and forming a cohesive whole that is easily followed

Etymology: The English noun "coherence" traces back to a Latin verb built from two simple parts. The prefix "con-" means "together," and "haerere" means "to stick" or "to cling." Put together, "cohaerere" meant "to stick together," a physical image of things adhering to one another before the idea of logical unity took hold. The Latin "cohaerentia" carried that sense of cohesion into a noun, and it passed into Middle French as "coherence" before arriving in English. Note that the word's core meaning is still physical stickiness in a sense: a thing that coheres holds together as a single mass. The modern figurative sense of ideas that hang together works the same way, with arguments and parts that adhere to a central point rather than drifting apart. English took the word from French, so the pathway runs Latin to French to English rather than being a direct borrowing from Latin.

Synonyms: unity, organization, consistency, clarity, logicality

Antonyms: incoherence, disorder, confusion