1
as in effectiveness
the capacity to persuade
the cogency of Thomas Paine's celebrated case for American independence
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in impact
the quality of an utterance that provokes interest and produces an effect
satirical comments of great cogency
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of cogency
In one of its most demanding assignments of recent memory, the San Francisco Opera Chorus led by John Keene embodies one population after another — monkeys, undersea dwellers, gods and heavenly hangers-on — and does it with power and cogency.
—
Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, 15 Nov. 2025
TikTok’s algorithm started swamping me with humanities grad students of varying cogency.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 17 Oct. 2025
Masterpiece remakes offer something very different, speaking to us with surprising urgency and cogency across time.
—Jim Shepard, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2025
The play echoes this ever-important sentiment but with far less cogency on an American stage.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2024
European leaders refused to comment on the record about their perceptions of Biden’s cogency.
—Francesca Chambers, USA TODAY, 12 July 2024
The emphasis is on technical perfection, formal cogency, and unity of interpretive approach.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2024
Here, his body of writing, published as well as unpublished, historical as well as contemporaneous, stands out for its cogency, intricacy, and fluency.
—Fredrik Logevall, Foreign Affairs, 20 Dec. 2022
Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, 15 Nov. 2025
TikTok’s algorithm started swamping me with humanities grad students of varying cogency.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 17 Oct. 2025
Masterpiece remakes offer something very different, speaking to us with surprising urgency and cogency across time.
—Jim Shepard, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2025
The play echoes this ever-important sentiment but with far less cogency on an American stage.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2024
European leaders refused to comment on the record about their perceptions of Biden’s cogency.
—Francesca Chambers, USA TODAY, 12 July 2024
The emphasis is on technical perfection, formal cogency, and unity of interpretive approach.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2024
Here, his body of writing, published as well as unpublished, historical as well as contemporaneous, stands out for its cogency, intricacy, and fluency.
—Fredrik Logevall, Foreign Affairs, 20 Dec. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cogency
Noun
-
Treatment includes organic methods like neem and horticultural oils, as well as chemical fungicides, both of which should be applied early in the growing season for maximum effectiveness.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
25 May 2026
-
The health of China’s businesses can be evaluated in terms of effectiveness (profitability), efficiency (return on assets deployed), and productivity (units of output vs inputs).—
George Calhoun,
Forbes.com,
25 May 2026
Noun
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And yet, each is playing with desperation to make an impact — and garner more playing time — that has jolted the Red Sox to life.—
Jen McCaffrey,
New York Times,
28 May 2026
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Even visitors with little interest in architecture can understand the impact immediately.—
David Nikel,
Forbes.com,
27 May 2026
Noun
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But his dictionary, with its conclusiveness, was a huge publishing success.—
Louis Menand,
New Yorker,
22 Dec. 2025
Noun
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The strikes have also targeted regions with biblical significance, threatening historical and archaeological sites.—
Alayna Treene,
CNN Money,
30 May 2026
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The president has pressured the Fed to cut rates, while Warsh has recently downplayed the significance and accuracy of the PCE gauge.—
D. Brian Blank,
Fortune,
30 May 2026
Noun
-
The Supreme Court spent much of the January oral arguments grappling with the biological advantage men tend to have over women in sports, and whether there is validity to claims that a man’s biological advantage can be suppressed by hormone drugs.—
Jack Birle,
The Washington Examiner,
27 May 2026
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The one person Fraser never had to convince about the validity of her turnaround was herself.—
Claire Zillman,
Fortune,
27 May 2026
Noun
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Her importance has been magnified by the absence of junior defender Presley Kannaka, who suffered a season-ending knee injury in the third game.—
Patrick Z. McGavin,
Chicago Tribune,
27 May 2026
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During the panel, speakers noted the importance of establishing relationships with creators and social listening, which together enable brands to react to trending online conversations quickly and authentically.—
Fairchild Studio,
Footwear News,
27 May 2026
Noun
-
According to authorities, a group of individuals attempted to storm a police station in the French capital late Saturday.—
Michael Sinkewicz,
FOXNews.com,
31 May 2026
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New Hampshire authorities are asking for the public’s help in solving a four-decade long murder mystery.—
Flint McColgan,
Boston Herald,
31 May 2026
Noun
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The beauty and persuasiveness of Claude’s response to Marks alone may be cause for skepticism, because personalization is one of Claude’s core product features.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
3 Mar. 2026
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The study released Thursday is not the first to try to measure the persuasiveness of AI.—
David Ingram,
NBC news,
4 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cogency.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cogency. Accessed 2 Jun. 2026.
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