- Today's Word
Congruity
kuhn-GROO-uh-tee
Definition
- (noun) A state of agreement, harmony, or logical consistency.
Example
There was an obvious congruity between his words and actions.
Fun Fact
Congruity is a crucial concept in mathematics, where it describes figures that match perfectly. But it extends far beyond geometry—literature, philosophy, and psychology all explore the idea that harmony and alignment create order and understanding. Aristotle’s theory of virtue ethics is based on congruity between beliefs and actions, emphasizing that a virtuous life requires consistency between what we say and what we do.
(noun) The state of having a damaged or lost reputation; being held in low regard by others or by the public.
The firm’s disrepute spread faster than any press release could contain — three clients left before the week was out.
Disrepute combines the prefix dis- meaning “away” or “reversal” with repute, from the Latin reputare — “to reckon” or “to think over” — built from re- (“again”) and putare (“to think” or “to reckon”). Repute entered English in the 15th century meaning the general opinion held of someone; disrepute followed as its logical opposite, describing the condition of having that opinion turn decisively negative.