propinquity
Americannoun
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nearness in place; proximity.
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nearness of relation; kinship.
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affinity of nature; similarity.
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nearness in time.
noun
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nearness in place or time
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nearness in relationship
Etymology
Origin of propinquity
First recorded in 1400–1450; Middle English, from Old French propinquite, from Latin propinquitās “nearness,” equivalent to propinqu(us) “near, nearby,” from prop(e) “near” + -inquus adjective suffix) + -itās -ity; see pro-
Explanation
Ah propinquity, a word meaning "proximity or physical closeness." Your propinquity to someone in a conversation will affect whether you can smell his breath or not. Propinquity had a brief moment in the sun on a television show in the 1950s called Dobie Gillis. There was an episode in which the nerdy girl, who was in love with Dobie Gillis, decided to get him to love her back. How? Propinquity! And so she explained it to him, over and over and over, theorizing that just being near someone long enough would tip them over the edge into love. Sadly for her, it didn’t work, but everyone who has ever seen or heard of the episode has the meaning of propinquity burned into their brain.
Vocabulary lists containing propinquity
The Scarlet Letter
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Close Encounters: Synonyms for "Near"
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"Simon's Saga," Vocabulary from Episode 15
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The explanation for their propinquity lies not in the creation of some whiz-bang, life-changing, paradigm-bending consumer product, or the shining virtues or particularly fertile minds that grace Silicon Valley’s fruited plain.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 26, 2025
As well as reflecting on the shocking propinquity of life and death, Donne is tormented by his isolation, as a patient:
From The Guardian • Dec. 4, 2017
To borrow the title of Scott Eyman’s smart, generous chronicle, they became “Hank & Jim,” a pair of guys who asked nothing of each other but propinquity.
From Washington Post • Nov. 17, 2017
A place like the King Cole Bar, which crowds strangers into thigh-grazing propinquity, is an ideal spot for people-watching.
From New York Times • Aug. 18, 2016
How, too, during the startling, then alarming occurrence of their captivity, her thoughts had flown at once to his propinquity as to a tower of refuge—she liked that simile and it would often recur.
From The Heath Hover Mystery by Mitford, Bertram
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
