equivalent

American  

[ih-kwiv-uh-luhnt, ee-kwuh-vey-luhnt] / ɪˈkwɪv ə lənt, ˌi kwəˈveɪ lənt /

adjective

1. equal in value, measure, force, effect, significance, etc..

   His silence is equivalent to an admission of guilt.

2. corresponding in position, function, etc..

   In some ways their prime minister is equivalent to our president.

3. Geometry. having the same extent, as a triangle and a square of equal area.

4. Mathematics. (of two sets) able to be placed in one-to-one correspondence.

5. Chemistry. having the same capacity to combine or react chemically.

---

noun

• equivalents
  plural

1. something that is equivalent.

equivalent British  

/ ɪˈkwɪvələnt /

adjective

1. equal or interchangeable in value, quantity, significance, etc

2. having the same or a similar effect or meaning

3. maths

   1. having a particular property in common; equal

   2. (of two equations or inequalities) having the same set of solutions

   3. (of two sets) having the same cardinal number

4. maths logic (of two propositions) having an equivalence between them

---

noun

1. something that is equivalent

2. short for equivalent weight

equivalent Scientific  

/ ĭ-kwĭv′ə-lənt /

1. Equal, as in value, meaning, or force.

2. 1. Of or relating to a relation between two elements that is reflexive, symmetric, and transitive.

   2. Having a one-to-one correspondence, as between parts. Two triangles having the same area are equivalent, as are two congruent geometric figures.

---

Synonym Usage

See equal.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonequivalent
  adjective
• quasi-equivalent
  adjective
• superequivalent
  adjective
• unequivalent
  adjective
• equivalently
  adverb
• nonequivalently
  adverb
• quasi-equivalently
  adverb
• unequivalently
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• equivalents
  plural

Etymology

Origin of equivalent

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English, from Late Latin aequivalent- (stem of aequivalēns ), present participle of aequivalēre. See equi-, -valent

Explanation

If two things are basically the same, you can say that they're the equivalent of each other. Like, studying advanced physics is the equivalent of banging your head against the wall. Equivalent's Latin roots are "equal" and "value," which suggests that the word originally was used to describe things that had the same value. Now it can be used to describe things that have the same effect, or importance, or role — for example, "England's Parliament is the equivalent of America's Congress." It can also be used as an adjective: "Eating a bowl of Sugar Pops for breakfast is equivalent to starting your day with two scoops of ice-cream."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

equivalent equivalents

Think of it as the culinary equivalent of shopping your pantry: What two, three or four ingredients keep appearing together in your cooking?

From Salon ● Aug. 25, 2026

Over the 20-year licence period, this would represent the equivalent of 0.002 percent of Namibia's seabed, it said after the clearance was announced.

From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026

At the midpoint, that would put net proceeds at about HK$13.12 billion, equivalent to US$1.67 billion.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026

"For an area the size of Inverclyde that's the equivalent of 15,000 in Glasgow."

From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2026

It was the equivalent of pulling a frantic all-nighter to get a paper done in college, only Barack was estimating it would take him roughly a couple of months to get the book finished.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

That is one of the messages to come out of the recent proliferation of AI models from Chinese companies that offer strong performance coupled with cheaper access than equivalents from Anthropic, OpenAI and others.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

Fiber from the plant can be used to make paper towels, toilet paper and other products that are both stronger and softer than wood-based equivalents, executives from Kimberly-Clark said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026

As of June 30, 2026, Iren had roughly $7.6 billion in cash and cash equivalents, a sign that the company has plenty of resources to continue its build-out.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026

SpaceX raised $85.7 billion in its initial public offering this month, bringing its cash and cash equivalents to $100.8 billion.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 23, 2026

Mixed in with the applause, though, was a spattering of whistles and the stamping of feet, the European equivalents of catcalls and boos.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown

Related Words

• commensurate
• comparable
• corresponding
• equal
• identical
• proportionate
• tantamount