- 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) A person who believes that the pursuit of pleasure and sensory enjoyment is the highest good and chief aim of life
A self-proclaimed hedonist, she planned her entire sabbatical around exceptional food, warm weather, and long afternoons with nothing to do.
Hedonist derives from the Greek hedone, meaning “pleasure” or “delight,” from hedys (“sweet”). The philosophical school of Hedonism was formally developed in ancient Greece — most notably by Epicurus, who argued that pleasure, properly understood, was the foundation of a good life. The word entered English in the 19th century as both a philosophical term and a descriptor for those who live purely for sensory gratification.