Venn diagram

Meanings

1. A diagram representing some sets by contours of closed shapes, such as circles or ellipses (and sometimes also the universal set as a rectangle enclosing all of these shapes), and indicating the relationships between the sets: by overlapping the shapes to show that the corresponding sets have a non-empty intersection, and by possibly (but not necessarily) enclosing all of the sets (which are proper subsets of the universal set) within a universal set (represented typically by a rectangle); such that the total number of simply connected regions is 2ⁿ, where n is the number of depicted sets which are proper subsets of the universal set.
2. The intersection of two or more things.

Etymology

Named after British mathematician and philosopher John Venn (1834–1923).