incommensurable

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The Word of the Day for June 1 is: 

incommensurable   \in-kuh-MEN-suh-ruh-bul\   adjective
     : not commensurable; broadly : lacking a basis of comparison in respect to 
a quality normally subject to comparison 

Example sentence:
     The two theories are incommensurable, making any attempt at comparison 
across disciplines ridiculous.

Did you know?
     "Commensurable" means "having a common measure" or "corresponding in size, 
extent, amount, or degree." Its antonym "incommensurable" generally refers to 
things that are unlike and incompatible, sharing no common ground (as in the 
"incommensurable theories" of the example sentence), or to things that are very 
disproportionate, often to the point of defying comparison ("incommensurable 
crimes"). Both words entered English in the 1500s and were originally used (as 
they still can be) for numbers that have or don't have a common divisor. They 
came to English by way of Middle French and Late Latin, ultimately deriving 
from the Latin noun "mensura," meaning "measure." "Mensura" is also an ancestor 
of "commensurate" (meaning "coextensive" or "proportionate") and 
"incommensurate" ("disproportionate" or "insufficient"), which overlap in 
meaning with "commensurable" and "incommensurable" but a
 re not exact synonyms.





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