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cogency

cogency

1 7.2
A clear, logical, and convincing quality that makes people accept an idea
  • noun
  • /ˈkoʊdʒənsi/
  • Formal
translation icon : coherencia
  • The cogency of his argument made it easy for everyone to understand his point of view.
  • gain cogency

Examples

  • In order for a personal belief to fall within the scope of Article 9, it must attain certain levels of cogency, seriousness, cohesion, and importance. (48)

    Academic text (2018)
  • Some studies question the cogency of coming out in non-Western cultural contexts.

    Academic text (2018)
  • Here again is a point from the Left that carries cogency, as long as it is not pushed too far.

    Academic text (1991)
  • But more importantly, it is the cogency of the arguments that matter, not "consensus."

    Blog text (34)
  • The sobering thought is that this economic view is likely to lose its cogency over the coming decades, certainly over the coming century.

    Academic text (1992)
  • The continuing cogency of this classical unanimity is confirmed on every side.

    Academic text (1992)
  • With much cogency, some of these individuals have protested that gay liberation, as constituted in the 1970s, did not include them.

    Academic text (1995)
  • The appeal is in the details, our awareness that the life imagined in them is convincingly represented by the cogencies of the text.

    Academic text (1996)
  • What was "spellbinding" about Newdow's appearance before the court was not so much the legal cogency of his argument but, rather, the almost evangelistic style of his presentation.

    Academic text (2013)
  • In solitude, all the precise contours, firm anchorings, and secure knowing of the clear, common light begin losing their cogency; what surrounds the soul is disturbingly imprecise, shadowy, fluid, without form, and without the particular certainties of the shared world one is now leaving behind.

    Academic text (1993)

Synonyms

strength
vscogency
23 4.1

How convincing an idea, argument, or reason is

focuses on clear logical quality as reason for acceptance rather than raw force
persuasiveness
vscogency
1 5.2

Ability to make someone believe or do something

emphasizes clear logical presentation rather than general appeal
convincibility
vscogency
1 7.7

Ability to make others believe or accept an idea

relies on clear logical form to win acceptance rather than mere believability
convincingness
vscogency
7.1

The ability to make someone believe something is true

stresses clear logical structure as basis for acceptance instead of mere belief
persuasibility
vscogency
7.5

How well something like a speech or ad makes people agree

values clear logical explanation over mere capacity or degree of influence

Antonyms

57 6.3

A lack of clear meaning that allows people to understand it in different ways

A way of thinking that does not follow clear reasons

How Convincing

cogency
  • Formal
1 7.2
plausibility
11 7.0

Surface Forms

cogency singular
cogencies plural

Morphology

cogency = cogent (transparent) = cogent + cy

The word 'cogency' is transparently derived from the adjective 'cogent' by adding the noun-forming suffix '-cy'.

Etymology

Cogency comes from Latin parts co- 'together' and agere 'to drive', and it shares the same basic root as the simple word act. So, cogency is the 'driving' power of an idea that pulls points together and makes them convincing.