Standard Lemma guide

consilience

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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  • General-American, Received-Pronunciation: /kənˈsɪ.li.əns/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The concurrence of multiple inductions drawn from different data sets.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: human-sciences, logic, mathematics, philosophy, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: coincidence

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

The agreement, co-operation, or overlap of academic disciplines.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Latin con- (prefix indicating a being or bringing together of several objects) + saliō (“to bound, jump, leap”) (modelled after resiliēns (“rebounding”)) + -ence, influenced by concurrent. Coined by English polymath William Whewell in 1840 in his book The Philosophy of the Inductive Sciences.

Across languages

Translations

10 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: consiliència — concurrence of multiple inductions
  • Esperanto: konsilienco — concurrence of multiple inductions
  • Finnish: konsilienssi — concurrence of multiple inductions
  • French: consilience — concurrence of multiple inductions
  • German: Konsilienz — concurrence of multiple inductions
  • Korean: 통섭 (tongseop) — concurrence of multiple inductions
  • Polish: konsyliencja — concurrence of multiple inductions
  • Portuguese: consiliência — concurrence of multiple inductions
  • Spanish: consiliencia — concurrence of multiple inductions
  • German: Konsilienz — agreement, co-operation, or overlap of academic disciplines