These are two words that have baffled me for long. Dependency is given as 'excessive dependence' in Chambers, but I would love to know how the spoken usage is. My guess is dependency has a political touch to it. In addition, there is an independency as well in the dictionaries, though it does not sound popular.
-
1Same question is here: ell.stackexchange.com/questions/41528/…, with much better discussion – Alex Fainshtein Jul 23 '19 at 18:22
I think "dependence" and "dependency" are like "competence" and "competency". Both are nouns. Yet, "dependence" emphasizes the quality of being dependent. So, it may also be abstract. Whereas, "dependency" focuses on the state of being dependent. It is likely to be concrete.
-
2Much better - deeper and thoughtful - answer is here: ell.stackexchange.com/a/41561/19905 – Alex Fainshtein Jul 23 '19 at 18:24
