What does concomitance mean?
Concomitance is a formal English noun denoting the state of accompanying or occurring alongside something else — the fact that two things exist, happen, or are found together. Where 'accompaniment' simply names the thing that goes along, concomitance emphasizes the relationship itself: the co-presence or joint occurrence of one thing with another. The word derives from the Latin verb 'comitare', formed from 'com-' (together) and 'comes' (companion), so its imagery is that of things traveling side by side. In modern usage it is uncommon outside academic prose, appearing most often in philosophy, medicine, law, and social commentary, typically in the construction 'in concomitance with'. A researcher might note that poor nutrition occurs in concomitance with low educational attainment, meaning the two reliably appear together without necessarily claiming that one causes the other. Its register is elevated and precise, making it useful where a plain phrase like 'going together' would seem too casual.
nounThe fact of accompanying or occurring together with something else; natural or habitual accompaniment or coexistence.
- The condition or fact of accompanying or occurring together with something else.
"Wealth often brings a certain concomitance of anxiety about preserving it."
"Poverty is too often found in concomitance with poor health and limited schooling."
"The philosopher argued that virtue cannot exist except in concomitance with right action."
Rarely pluralized; the word is almost always treated as an uncountable abstraction.
"The study catalogued several concomitances between the two conditions."
From Latin 'comes' — the word for a companion at your side — 'concomitance' literally means the quality of traveling together.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of concomitance
Concomitance comes from Late Latin 'concomitantia', from the verb 'comitare' meaning to accompany, itself built on Latin 'com-' (together) and 'comes' (companion, attendant). English adopted it in the late sixteenth century as a learned, Latinate term for accompaniment. It shares this root with 'concomitant', the more familiar adjective and noun drawn from the same Latin source.
Related word forms
How concomitance is actually used
Formal and somewhat rare; it appears chiefly in academic, philosophical, medical, and legal writing. It usually takes the form 'in concomitance with' rather than standing alone.
Easily confused with concomitance
'Concomitant' is the adjective (or noun meaning an accompanying thing) describing something that accompanies; 'concomitance' is the abstract noun naming the state or fact of accompanying.