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SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS

pertinent

adjective

Relevant to the subject or situation.

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Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.

Relevant and appropriate

Closest synonyms

germanerelevantapplicableappositeaptmaterial

Related words and expressions

aproposto the pointbearing directly on the issue

These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.

Usage distinction

Pertinent information bears directly on the question; material often emphasizes that it could affect the outcome.

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RELATED FORMS, ONE FEATURED ENTRY

The pertinent family

These forms are closely related, but their grammar and use are not identical. Expand a form to compare its meaning and examples.

pertinencenoun

Direct relevance to the subject being considered.

Direct relevance

Closest synonyms

relevanceapplicabilityappositenessappropriatenesspertinency

Related expressions

bearingaptnessconnection to the issue
The question's pertinence became clear when the missing records appeared.
Dictionary practice example.
Residents discussing a shared laundry room needed relevant information about opening times, machine access, and the space available for folding clothes. One resident questioned the pertinence of a long account about the building's old garden, since it did not help answer any laundry question.
From Keeping the Discussion Relevant.
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CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT

See pertinent in use

She asked a pertinent question about the project's timetable.
Dictionary practice example.
At the end of the presentation, Nora chose to reiterate the limitation that the map represented an imagined scenario rather than a real planning outcome. She then used one slide to recapitulate the main question, the depicted pattern, and the uncertainty in the interpretation. A listener asked a pertinent question about how one symbol had been assigned.
From Say It Clearly, Then Stop.

Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.

Synonym reference scope and sources

The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.

How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license

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