What does incoherence mean?
Incoherence names the condition of ideas, statements, or parts failing to fit together in a logical and coherent way. It commonly appears in discussion of arguments, narratives, theories, and official reports, where the individual components may seem meaningful but the overall structure does not make sense. The term can also describe speech or writing that is confused and difficult to follow. Incoherence is typically formal and carries a critical connotation: it suggests not merely that something is unusual, but that its parts are incompatible, disconnected, or governed by faulty reasoning. The word is useful because it names a precise problem distinct from simple disagreement or error. A claim can be false without being incoherent, but an incoherent explanation may fail even before individual facts are considered because the relationships among them do not cohere.
nounIncoherence is the lack of logical or orderly connection among ideas, arguments, or parts of something. It can also refer to confused, unintelligible speech or writing.
- The state of lacking logical, argumentative, or organizational unity; also, confused or unintelligible speech or writing.
"The report was dismissed because its central claims suffered from serious incoherence."
"The witness's account was so full of incoherence that the judge struggled to follow it."
"The novel's final chapter was criticized for the incoherence between its two timelines."
The plural is possible but uncommon in ordinary use, particularly when referring to the general quality of being incoherent.
"The analyst identified several incoherences in the proposed model."
Incoherence is what makes a sensible-looking pile of words fall apart: each point may be present, but the connections between them are missing.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does incoherence come from?
The word was formed in English by adding the negative prefix “in-” to “coherence,” meaning logical consistency or unity. Those elements ultimately derive from Latin coherere, meaning “to stick or hold together,” which also underlies coherent, cohesion, and cohesive. The prefixed form developed in the 19th century as a term for the absence of logical consistency in arguments, writing, and speech.
Related word forms
How incoherence is actually used
The word is formal and often describes an argument, text, account, or theory. It is stronger and more evaluative than a general reference to confusion.
Easily confused with incoherence
“Incoherence” is the noun naming the quality of being logically disconnected, whereas “incoherent” is the adjective describing speech, writing, or an argument that lacks such connection.
“Incoherence” means the absence of logical or orderly connection, while “coherence” means a state of being logically organized and consistent.