Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- adj. Appealing to the intellect or powers of reasoning; convincing: a cogent argument. See Synonyms at valid.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- Compelling by physical force; potent; irresistible by physical means.
- Compelling assent or conviction; appealing powerfully to the intellect or moral sense; not easily denied or refuted: as, a cogent reason or argument.
Wiktionary
- adj. Reasonable and convincing; based on evidence.
- adj. Appealing to the intellect or powers of reasoning.
- adj. Forcefully persuasive.
GNU Webster's 1913
- adj. Compelling, in a physical sense; powerful.
- adj. Having the power to compel conviction or move the will; constraining; conclusive; forcible; powerful; not easily reasisted.
WordNet 3.0
- adj. powerfully persuasive
Etymologies
- Latin cōgēns, cōgent-, present participle of cōgere, to force : co-, co- + agere, to drive; see ag- in Indo-European roots.
Examples
“You speak with a clear voice and in cogent paragraphs, and make a great case for our progressive causes.”
“Now that’s what I call a cogent argument reply thomas”
“Imagining a universe in which Seixon’s arguments are cogent is a cost-effective alternative to doing drugs … kinda like smoking Norwegian pot by proxy. see his responses pertaining to the downing street memo. btw, tripmaster, i almost went there in my post about wmds, but decided against it. somehow i just knew what his response was going to be.”
Think Progress » Limbaugh Distorts Numbers To Downplay Global Warming Science
“Stephen Clark, those are not what I would call cogent legal arguments.”
The Volokh Conspiracy » The right formerly known as the right to marry
“Professor Woodward dismisses me as "misinformed as well as uninformed about the relevant past," and yet relies entirely on my text in crafting a 2,500-word cogent summary, including quotes and descriptive scenes, of the personal and political history of Wallace and the Wallace family dating to Reconstruction.”
“Mr. Mahindra said support is growing within the Indian government to increase the investment limit and he said there is no "cogent" argument against it.”
The Wall Street Journal: Mahindra: Loosen Limits on Defense Investment in India
“But I'm missing the kind of cogent argument that might give some teeth to your claim of having put sharp questions to your sparring partner.”
“This may not be "cogent" enough for Conventional Theology 101.”
On Thursday, the Legg report will be published along with...
“Holbrooke's flattery, though, did not deter Podesta, who kept insisting on some kind of cogent answer about objectives and metrics.”
“Ron English, Deputy General Counsel for Seattle Public Schools told me that Chris Jackins was selected because of his well established credentials as an informed critic of the school system and his ability, in the Distict's opinion, that he was well qualified to present "cogent" Statements Against.”
Sound Politics: Suppression of Dissent in Christine Gregoire's AmeriKKKa
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘cogent’.
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GRE Barrons Wordlist
A complete Barron's Wordlist for GRE preparation. Your online flashcard replacement.
abase, abash, abate, abbreviate, abdicate, aberrant, aberration, abet, abeyance, abhor, abject, abjure and 4084 more...
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SAT Words
But only the ones that I don't already know.
abase, abash, abominate, abstruse, acclivity, accolade, accost, adroit, adulate, adulterate, adumbrate, affray and 241 more...
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Words build meanings from origins( etymology )
These come from gamma meditation ,I think.
discursive, exogenous, machinations, purportedly, sumptuous, congruity, cantankerous, incongruous, festoon, hessian, ratiocinative, stratigraphic and 837 more...
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Words that Julio has taught me
panegyric, encomium, navigable, gerrymander, carpetbagging, insidious, ribald, vilify, epithalamion, cogent, deprecate, apocryphal
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Other look-ups
Ido Berger chess openings Oct 3, 2010
marco_nj "a cogent and concise narrative" Jan 22, 2009
Prolagus The most cogent reason for restricting the interference of government is the great evil of adding unnecessarily to its power.
(John Stuart Mill) Mar 21, 2008