a. [ad. L. congruent-em agreeing, consistent, congruous, pr. pple. of congruĕre: see CONGRUE v. (Also in mod.F.)]
1. Accordant, suitable, proper; = CONGRUOUS 1.
1432–50. trans. Higden (Rolls), I. 293. A welle nye to the castelle Pascence, congruente to the vse of men, but not of women.
1540. Elyot, Image Gov. (1556), 17. His temperate and sobre liuying beyng thought of som men not agreable nor congruent to his majestee.
a. 1637. B. Jonson, Discov. (1641), 119. The congruent and harmonious fitting of parties in a sentence.
1864. Bowen, Logic, iv. 65. Considered in relation to each other, Marks are either Congruent or Repugnant.
1878. Lewes, Study Psychol. (1879), 166. Each new conclusion has to be … dove-tailed into the rest, made congruent with the system of thought.
† b. Correspondent in physical shape or form.
1578. Banister, Hist. Man, I. 35. The outer side of Talus is largely sinuated … to the apt constitutyng of a seate congruent to the inner side of the lower Appendance of Fibula.
1715. Cheyne, Philos. Princ. Relig., I. ii. § 42. Very smooth and plain, or at least congruent Superficies.
c. Of persons: Agreeing in action with. rare.
1878. Tennyson, Q. Mary, III. iv. But you, my Lord … In clear and open day were congruent with that vile Cranmer in the accursed lie Of good Queen Catherine’s divorce.
† 2. = CONGRUOUS 2. Obs.
1432–50. trans. Higden (Rolls), I. 9. After the supputacion of euery yere congruent.
1531. Elyot, Gov., I. i. It is therfore congruent and accordynge, that [etc.].
1576. Baker, Jewell of Health, 46 b. The congruent tyme of the dystillation of Yarrowe is … about the ende of May.
1656. Jeanes, Mixt. Schol. Div., 86. It was more congruent for the word, the second person to be incarnate … then the first person … or the third.
a. 1718. Penn, Tracts, Wks. 1726, I. 638. It is not congruent for a Philosopher to stutter and babble.
† 3. Gram.= CONGRUOUS 4. Obs.
1596. Sir J. Davies, Orchestra, xcii. For humble grammar first doth set the parts Of congruent and well according speech.
4. Geom. a. = CONGRUOUS 6.
1706. Phillips (ed. Kersey), Concurring or congruent Figures (in Geom.), are such as being laid one upon another, will exactly meet and cover one another.
1715. Cheyne, Philos. Princ. Relig. (J.). These planes were so separated as to move upon a common side of the congruent squares, as an axis.
1885. Leudesdorf, Cremona’s Proj. Geom., § 76. Two figures are said to be congruent when the one may be superposed upon the other so as exactly to coincide with it.
b. Cf. CONGRUENCE, CONGRUENCY.
1864. Plücker, New Geom. of Space, in Phil. Trans. (1865), 727. A configuration may be regarded as the mutual intersection of three complexes, i. e. as the geometrical locus of congruent rays belonging to all three complexes.
5. Theory of Numbers. Said of two numbers which being divided by a third number, called the modulus, give the same remainder.
Thus 15 and 29 are congruent with respect to the modulus 7; whence e.g., it follows that the 15th and 29th of any month fall on the same day of the week.
1889. Chrystal, Algebra. If m be any positive integer whatever, which we call the modulus, two integers, M and N, which leave the same remainder when divided by m, are said to be congruent with respect to the modulus m.
