Concordance: meaning, definitions and examples

Used in literary or academic contexts to refer to an alphabetical list of the principal words used in a book or body of work with their immediate contexts. Typically found in the appendices of religious or classic texts.

• The concordance of Shakespeare's works helped me locate every instance of the word 'love'.
• She was consulting the Bible concordance to find relevant verses on peace.

Used in various contexts, like in books for listing topics, names, or subjects alphabetically with page references, or in databases for quick search and retrieval of information.

• Please refer to the index to find information on 'climate change'.
• The database index allows for more efficient searches.

Often used in linguistic or writing contexts to provide synonyms and antonyms of words, helping users find alternative ways to express the same idea.

• Using a thesaurus can help you avoid repetitive language in your essay.
• I checked the thesaurus to find a synonym for 'happy'.

Typically used in commercial or educational contexts to list items available for sale or resources available in a library or collection.

• I received the new spring catalogue from the clothing store.
• The library's catalogue now includes hundreds of e-books.