concurrence

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English concurrence,^[2] borrowed from Medieval Latin concurrentia (“a running together”),^{[2][3][4][5][6][7]} from Latin concurrēns,^[5][6] the present participle of concurrō (“to run together, assemble hurriedly; to clash”),^[6][3] from com- (“together”) and currō (“to run”),^[6] from Proto-Indo-European *kers- (“to run”).^[6] Etymonline also allows a source in Old French concurrence (14th century),^[6] and the OED and the Shorter Oxford allow one in the English adjective concurrent, with the suffix -ence.^[3][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

Concentration of mind, about 1443, in R. Pecock's Rule, in the phrase "concurrence of mynde",^[2][7] and then correspondence, of the years of different reckonings, in the Middle English translation of Higden.^[2] The OED's first record is later, 1525, for a combining of agents towards a purpose,^[3] a sense Etymonline dates to the early 15th century.^[6]

Semantic evolution

Most of the word's modern senses appeared in English between 1525 and 1669.^[3] Literal running together and meeting, of things or of people, is recorded in the 17th century, and has died out, except that the meeting of lines lasted on as a geometrical term.^[3][8] Joint action came first in the modern record (1525),^[3] then coincidence in time (1605, in Bacon).^[3][6] Agreement of opinion, which the American Heritage Dictionary now lists first, appears last, in 1669,^[3][9] and Etymonline likewise says by the 1660s.^[6] The sense of rivalry, from 1603, is called a Gallicism in its later use by the OED and the Shorter Oxford.^[3][7] Law added its own uses: a shared jurisdiction, from 1809,^[3][4] and in Black's dictionary a judge's vote for a judgment, often on other grounds, the separate opinion explaining it, and a legislative chamber's acceptance of the other chamber's amendment.^[10] From 1863, in Neale's Essays on Liturgiology, the OED also records a technical use in the Christian Church.^[3]

Timeline

• c. 1443 – concentration of mind.^[2][7]
• 1525 – combination in working for an end; cooperation.^[3]
• 1603 – pursuit of the same object; rivalry.^[3]
• 1605 – occurrence together in time, coincidence.^[3][6]
• 1632 – a coming together of people (until 1675).^[3]
• 1656 – the meeting of lines or surfaces; in geometry, their point of meeting (until 1881).^[3]
• before 1661 – a running together, confluence (until 1682).^[3]
• 1669 – agreement, assent.^[3][6]
• 1809 – in law, concurrent jurisdiction.^[3]

Meanings

Noun

1. Agreement in opinion; assent or consent: The treaty needs the concurrence of both parties.^[9][8][4][3]
2. Cooperation or combined action, as of people or causes.^[9][8][4][3]
3. Occurrence at the same time; coincidence: a rare concurrence of storms and high tides.^[9][8][4][3]
4. (geometry) The point at which three or more lines meet.^[8][11][3]
5. (law) A sharing of equal powers or jurisdiction by two authorities.^[4][3]
6. (law) A judge's vote in favour of a judgment, often on different grounds, or the separate opinion explaining it.^[10]
7. (law) Acceptance by one house of a bicameral legislature of an amendment made by the other.^[10]
8. (archaic) Rivalry or competition.^[4][7][3]

Word family

• nonconcurrence

Related words

• concur
• concurrent
• concurrency
• current
• course

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e Kurath, Hans; Kuhn, Sherman M.; Lewis, Robert E., eds. (1952–2001), Middle English Dictionary, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press; online edition ed. Frances McSparran et al. (2000–2018)
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
4. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
7. ^ a b c d e f Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ a b c d e Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
9. ^ a b c d The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
10. ^ a b c Garner, Bryan A., ed. (2004), Black's Law Dictionary, 8th ed., St. Paul, Minn.: Thomson West
11. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House