COHERENCE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does coherence mean? 

• COHERENCE (noun)
  The noun COHERENCE has 2 senses:

1. the state of cohering or sticking together

2. logical and orderly and consistent relation of parts

  Familiarity information: COHERENCE used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• COHERENCE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The state of cohering or sticking together

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Synonyms:

coherence; coherency; cohesion; cohesiveness

Hypernyms ("coherence" is a kind of...):

connectedness; connection; link (the state of being connected)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "coherence"):

consistency (logical coherence and accordance with the facts)

continuity (uninterrupted connection or union)

Antonym:

incoherence (lack of cohesion or clarity or organization)

Derivation:

cohere (come or be in close contact with; stick or hold together and resist separation)

coherent (sticking together)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Logical and orderly and consistent relation of parts

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

coherence; coherency

Hypernyms ("coherence" is a kind of...):

comprehensibility; understandability (the quality of comprehensible language or thought)

Derivation:

coherent (marked by an orderly, logical, and aesthetically consistent relation of parts)

 Context examples 

Use of optical coherence tomography to capture ulta-high resolution images of tissue surfaces which can be used to identify cancerous legions.

(Optical Biopsy, NCI Thesaurus)

The usage of this unit is discouraged in favor of the katal by International Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine due to lack of its coherence with the SI system.

(Enzyme Unit, NCI Thesaurus)

In the new study, the researchers used a noninvasive technique — called optical coherence tomography angiography — to examine the retinas in eyes of 30 study participants with an average age in the mid 70s, none of whom exhibited clinical symptoms of Alzheimer's.

(Predicting Alzheimer's Disease May Be Possible Using Eye Exam, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

Also called optical coherence tomography.

(OCT, NCI Dictionary)

The murmur trembled on the verge of coherence, sank down, mounted excitedly, and then ceased altogether.

(The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald)