You probably use these words a lot: coincidence, coincidental, and coincidentally.
But what about the verb: coincide? Have you used it recently?
Often, it's a fantastic choice for writing a sentence that's so neat, so tidy, and so stripped of unnecessary words that it would make Strunk and White proud. So, let's check it out today.
You'll notice how it's related to other words about events happening, like incident, accident, and un___cedented ("happening for the very first time, with nothing like it ever happening before"). Could you recall that last one?
(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.)
definition:
Our word "coincide" has Latin roots that literally mean "to fall upon together."
When things coincide, or when one thing coincides with another thing, they happen at the same time.
grammatical bits:
Part of speech:
Verb, the intransitive kind: "Her birthday coincides with his;" "Their birthdays coincide."
Compared to its other forms ("coincidence" and so on), the verb "coincide" has an especially precise, formal tone. So, it's perfect for helping us sound scholarly or journalistic as we describe events that take place around the same time.
And, it helps us avoid dull, wordy phrases like "happened at the same time" or "took place pretty close together in time."
And, it makes a smooth transition between ideas. "The storm coincided with a national holiday." "This national movement coincided with a global upheaval."
And, it helps us stay calm and rational as we clarify that events occurred together simply by chance, or because people planned them that way: that neither event necessarily caused the other, nor did Fate necessarily intervene. Here's the Seattle Times: "Lightning-sparked wildfires west of Sonoma County and east of Napa two weeks ago coincided with the start of the harvest for some grape varieties."
If I sound a tad overexcited about the word "coincide," it's because I am! It's wonderfully useful.
So, enjoy it as you talk about events, holidays, seasons, trends, movements and so on that coincide with each other: "This coincided with that;" "These two things may coincide;" "We timed this to coincide with that."
Thanks for letting me know! If you have any questions about this word, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.
study it:
Explain the meaning of "coincide" without saying "happen together" or "occur simultaneously."
try it out:
The Lord of the Rings movies coincided with my college years, so if I watch them now, I'm transported back, almost magically, into the excitement of crowding into a theater with my college friends.
Talk about a similar experience of yours. What's a popular movie, series, book, song, or album that coincided with a particular period of your youth?
before you review, play:
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Our game this month is Perfectly Cromulent Words!
In each issue this month, match a scene from The Simpsons to the term that it calls to mind.
To see the answer, scroll to the bottom of the issue.
2. In Life of Pi, Yann Martel wrote: "At a point where the land was high and I could see the sea to my left and down the road a long ways, I suddenly felt I was in heaven... I felt like the centre of a small circle coinciding _____ the centre of a much larger one."
To be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. Disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.
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