Definition

1. Noun:
   • Communication by exchanging letters: The act of writing and receiving letters between people or organizations.
   • A close similarity, connection, or equivalence: The state of being analogous or agreeing in nature, function, or position.
   • The relation of corresponding in degree, size, or amount: A direct or proportional relationship between two things.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:
  • I kept all my correspondence with the author. (I saved all the letters I exchanged with the author.)
  • There is a direct correspondence between effort and results. (There is a direct relationship between how hard you work and the outcomes you achieve.)
  • The correspondence of the two witness accounts was striking. (The similarity between the two witnesses' stories was remarkable.)

Advanced Usage

• "In correspondence with": Exchanging letters with someone; or, in agreement or harmony with something.

  • She has been in correspondence with a pen pal for years. (She has been writing letters to a pen pal for years.)
  • His actions were not in correspondence with his words. (His actions did not match his words.)

• "One-to-one correspondence": A relationship where each element of one set is paired with exactly one element of another set.

  • In a perfect translation, there is not always a one-to-one correspondence between words. (In a perfect translation, a single word in one language does not always match a single word in another.)

Variants and Related Words

• Correspond (verb): To communicate by exchanging letters; to be similar or equivalent.

  • The two halves of the document should correspond. (The two halves of the document should match.)

• Correspondent (noun): A person who writes letters; a journalist who reports news from a particular place or on a particular subject.

  • He is our foreign correspondent in Paris. (He is our journalist who reports news from Paris.)

Synonyms

• Communication: The imparting or exchanging of information.
• Similarity: The state of being alike.
• Agreement: Harmony or accordance in opinion or feeling.

Related Phrases

• Correspondence course: A course of study in which student and teachers communicate by mail.

  • She completed a business management correspondence course. (She finished a business management course studied by mail.)

• Commercial correspondence: Letters or emails related to business transactions.

  • He handles all the firm's commercial correspondence. (He manages all the business letters for the company.)

Noun

1. similarity by virtue of corresponding
2. (mathematics) an attribute of a shape or relation; exact reflection of form on opposite sides of a dividing line or plane
3. the relation of corresponding in degree or size or amount
4. compatibility of observations
   • there was no agreement between theory and measurement
   • the results of two tests were in correspondence
5. communication by the exchange of letters