adj. (of a relation, etc.) 1. distinguished from some other relation of the same name by the fact that it applies more restrictively, specifically by excluding the possibility of the identity of its two relata. For example, a strict inequality such as x < y holds only between pairs of distinct numbers, while the weak inequality x ≤ y permits its arguments to be identical. Similarly, if x < y implies that f(x) > f(y), f is a strictly decreasing function; a function is strictly convex if the chord joining any two points on the graph lies strictly above the graph; a norm is strictly convex if the corresponding unit ball contains no line segments in its boundary. See proper. See also ordering. 2. distinguished from a relation of the same name that is not the subject of formal study; for example, strict identity is governed by a set of axioms and is distinguished from various uses of same in ordinary language.