equivalent
[ih-kwiv-uh-luh nt or for 5, ee-kwuh-vey-luh nt]
adjective
equal in value, measure, force, effect, significance, etc.: His silence is equivalent to an admission of guilt.
corresponding in position, function, etc.: In some ways their prime minister is equivalent to our president.
Geometry. having the same extent, as a triangle and a square of equal area.
Mathematics. (of two sets) able to be placed in one-to-one correspondence.
Chemistry. having the same capacity to combine or react chemically.
noun
something that is equivalent.
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RELATED WORDS
identical, comparable, corresponding, equal, proportionate, tantamount, commensurate, even, agnate, correspondent, like, reciprocal, duplicate, correlative, carbon, convertible, copy, parallel, substitute, ditto
Nearby words
- equivalence,
- equivalence class,
- equivalence principle,
- equivalence relation,
- equivalency,
- equivalent air speed,
- equivalent circuit,
- equivalent focal length,
- equivalent weight,
- equivalve
Origin of equivalent
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for equivalent
equivalent
adjective
noun
Word Origin for equivalent
C15: from Late Latin aequivalēns, from aequivalēre to be equally significant, from Latin aequi- equi- + valēre to be worth
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
equivalent
early 15c., from Middle French equivalent and directly from Late Latin aequivalentem (nominative aequivalens) "equivalent," present participle of aequivalere "be equivalent," from Latin aequus "equal" (see equal) + valere "be well, be worth" (see valiant). As a noun from c.1500.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
equivalent
[ĭ-kwĭv′ə-lənt]
adj.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
equivalent
[ĭ-kwĭv′ə-lənt]
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.