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commensurate

Commensurate is an adjective meaning corresponding in size, extent, or degree; also appropriate or proportional to something. The phrase “commensurate with” is used to indicate that rewards, responsibilities, or penalties are in proper proportion to the subject, such as “the salary is commensurate with experience.”

In mathematics, commensurate describes two quantities whose ratio is a rational number; there exists a common

Etymology trace the term to Latin commensus, meaning “measured together,” from com- “together” and mensuratus, the

Usage notes: commensurate tends to appear in formal or professional contexts, including law, economics, and scholarly

See also: commensurability, incommensurability.

unit
that
can
measure
both.
When
no
such
unit
exists
and
their
ratio
is
irrational,
the
quantities
are
described
as
incommensurable.
The
Greek
discovery
that
the
diagonal
and
the
side
of
a
square
are
incommensurable
helped
establish
the
concept
of
irrational
numbers.
perfect
passive
participle
of
metiri
“to
measure.”
It
entered
English
through
Latin
and
French
in
the
early
modern
period.
writing.
It
conveys
that
a
relationship
or
comparison
is
made
on
a
common
standard
of
measurement
or
evaluation,
and
it
is
typically
used
with
the
preposition
with.