contiguity
Americannoun
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the state of being contiguous; contact or proximity.
-
a series of things in continuous connection; a continuous mass or extent.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of contiguity
From the Late Latin word contiguitās, dating back to 1635–45. See contiguous, -ity
Explanation
Use the noun contiguity when you're talking about the state of things being right up next to each other, like the contiguity of two countries that share a border. You're most likely to come across the word contiguity in a discussion of geography. For example, you could talk about the contiguity of the United States and its northern neighbor, Canada, or the contiguity of New Hampshire and Vermont. Contiguity shares a root with the more common contiguous, the Latin contingere, which means "to touch upon."
Vocabulary lists containing contiguity
The Scarlet Letter
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The Return of the Native
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The House of the Seven Gables
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Those principles include compactness, contiguity and the preservation of political subdivisions, including cities and counties, and “communities of interest” that have geography, culture or an economic sector in common.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026
What is vital about the peasant kitchen is its sense of contiguity.
From Slate • Mar. 15, 2025
"They also don't just associate that word with an object based on temporal contiguity without really understanding the meaning of those words, but they activate a memory of an object when they hear its name."
From Science Daily • Mar. 22, 2024
“Since the distance between town and island is slight, we do not think the failure of the legislative plan to achieve literal contiguity a serious demerit,” the judges wrote in 1992.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 12, 2023
But it was no longer safe for Hancock to remain in such close contiguity to the British troops.
From Homes of American Statesmen With Anecdotical, Personal, and Descriptive Sketches by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
