equicardinal
|e-qui-car-di-nal|
🇺🇸
/ˌɛkwɪˈkɑɹdɪnəl/
🇬🇧
/ˌɛkwɪˈkɑːdɪnəl/
having equal cardinality (same 'size')
Etymology
'equicardinal' originates from Latin, specifically the prefix 'aequi-' (from 'aequus') meaning 'equal', combined with 'cardinal' from Latin 'cardinalis' (from 'cardo') where 'cardo' meant 'hinge' or (by extension) 'principal'.
'equicardinal' is a modern English mathematical formation combining the Latin-derived prefix 'equi-' and the English borrowing 'cardinal' (via Late Latin and Old French influences); it developed in parallel with the noun 'cardinality' (from Late Latin 'cardinalitas') and related mathematical terms such as 'equipotent' and 'equinumerous'.
The components originally meant 'equal' and 'principal/hinge', but when combined in this mathematical context they came to mean specifically 'having equal cardinality' (i.e., 'of equal size in terms of number of elements').
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
having equal cardinality; (especially in set theory) two sets are equicardinal if they have the same number of elements or there exists a one-to-one correspondence (bijection) between them.
The set of natural numbers and the set of even numbers are equicardinal.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Last updated: 2025/10/18 09:38