Other Religions Atheism and Agnosticism Knowing the Difference Between Contingent vs. Necessary Truths Share Flipboard Email Print AnasiZ/Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain Other Religions Belief Systems Ethics Key Figures in Atheism By Austin Cline Austin Cline Atheism Expert M.A., Princeton University B.A., University of Pennsylvania Austin Cline, a former regional director for the Council for Secular Humanism, writes and lectures extensively about atheism and agnosticism. Learn about our Editorial Process Updated on February 24, 2019 The distinction between contingent and necessary statements is one of the oldest in philosophy. Truth is necessary if denying it would entail a contradiction. A truth is contingent, however, if it happens to be true but could have been false. Example Cats are mammals.Cats are reptiles.Cats have claws. The first statement is a necessary truth because denying it, as with the second statement, results in a contradiction. Cats are, by definition, mammals, so saying that they are reptiles is a contradiction. The third statement is a contingent truth because it is possible that cats could have evolved without claws. This is similar to the distinction between essential and accidental qualities. Being a mammal is part of a cat's essence, but having claws is an accident. Cite this Article Format mla apa chicago Your Citation Cline, Austin. "Knowing the Difference Between Contingent vs. Necessary Truths." Learn Religions, Sep. 16, 2021, learnreligions.com/contingent-vs-necessary-truths-4079977. Cline, Austin. (2021, September 16). Knowing the Difference Between Contingent vs. Necessary Truths. Retrieved from https://www.learnreligions.com/contingent-vs-necessary-truths-4079977 Cline, Austin. "Knowing the Difference Between Contingent vs. Necessary Truths." Learn Religions. https://www.learnreligions.com/contingent-vs-necessary-truths-4079977 (accessed March 21, 2023). copy citation