Coherence derives from the Latin verb cohaerere, roughly meaning ‘to stick together’. The word coherence first occurs in French in the 16th century. It has evolved to mean parts fitting into a whole, clarity, unity, making sense.
I like this word because it refers to a quality that we all seek in our minds: an integrated focus, clarity of meaning, and intuitively knowing how to proceed from here to there; from before to now to when. Coherence also conveys a sense of direction and purpose.