necessary condition

Cultural  

1. In mathematics, a condition that must be satisfied for a statement to be true, but that does not in and of itself make it true. For example, a necessary condition to become president of the United States is that a candidate be over thirty-five years of age, but just being over thirty-five does not make one president.

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Example Sentences

The rate increases that started that year, plus inflation and pandemic after-effects, were enough to push some of Japan’s zombie companies out of business at long last—a painful but necessary condition for future economic growth.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 21, 2025

"Reducing inflation was a necessary condition, but it is not sufficient."

From Barron's • Oct. 22, 2025

This meant oxygen is a necessary condition for Candida growth.

From Science Daily • Jun. 4, 2024

And so it's not a sufficient condition, but it's a necessary condition.

From Salon • May 25, 2024

While food production was thus a necessary condition for the evolution or early adoption of writing, it was not a sufficient condition.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond