a. (and sb.). [a. F. coïncident, ad. med.L. *coincident-em, pres. pple. of coincidĕre to COINCIDE.]
1. Occupying the same place or portion of space.
1656. trans. Hobbes’ Elem. Philos. (1839), 102. Coincident and coextended with it.
1660. Barrow, Euclid, I. viii. So the sides of the angles A and D are coincident.
1704. Newton, Opticks (1721), 43 (J.). These circles … as I went from them they came nearer and nearer together, and at length became co-incident.
1822. Imison, Sci. & Art (ed. Webster), I. 269. If the object be in the centre of the mirror’s concavity, the image and object will be coincident, and equal in bulk.
1831. Brewster, Optics, xix. 164. Having its plane of polarisation coincident with or parallel to the plane of reflexion.
2. Occurring at the same time and occupying the same space of time; exactly contemporaneous.
1598. Florio, Coincidente, coincident, incident with or vnto.
1654. H. L’Estrange, Chas. I. (1655), 3. In truth they were so co-incident, as the loyal hearted English could not distinguish between the Spanish match and Charles his ruine.
1728. Newton, Chronol. Amended, vi. 355. The 13th year of his Reign was coincident in winter with the 20th of the Peloponnesian war.
1849. Cobden, Speeches, 78. The most terrible distress, always coincident with dear food in our manufacturing … districts.
1876. J. H. Newman, Hist. Sk., I. I. iii. 139. The resistance to the Pope’s authority … is pretty nearly coincident with the rise of the Ottomans.
3. Having the same nature, character or value; in exact agreement, wholly consonant with.
1563–87. Foxe, A. & M. (1596), 14/1. So the name of bishop is coincident with the office of apostle.
a. 1638. Mede, Wks., IV. lxxxvii. 872. These [principles], though they be sometimes coincident, are not the same.
1665. Glanvill, Sceps. Sci., Introd. 8. Our ends are so far from being repugnant that they are coincident.
1729. Butler, Serm., Wks. 1874, II. 37. Duty and interest are perfectly coincident.
1798. T. Twining, Recr. & Studies (1882), 228. The most congenial, the most coincident friend I have.
1875. Jevons, Money (1878), 194. Standard coins, whose nominal value is coincident with their metallic value.
† 4. Incident or concomitant to. Obs.
1567. N. Sander, Rocke of Church, 216. There may be an other thing coincident to some degree of men.
1648. Herrick, Hesper., Empires. Empires of Kings are now, and ever were, As Sallust saith, co-incident to feare.
† B. sb. A thing that coincides with something else, a concomitant. Obs.
1626. Walton, in Reliq. Wotton. (1672), 322. Coincidents are not always Causes.
1658. Evelyn, Mem. (1857), III. 106. When virtue and blood are coincidents.
1750. Harris, Hermes, Wks. (1841), 176. All motion and rest imply time and place, as a kind of necessary coincidents.
