analyze English · revision 16148

+ {{infobox|confidence=probable|formation=derivation|attested=1587|origins=grc ἀνάλυσις}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈæn.ə.laɪz/ ''(UK)''; /ˈæn.əˌlaɪz/ ''(US)''^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It seems to come from ''[[analyse]]'', an anglicized form of ''[[analysis]]'' used in the 17th and 18th centuries,^(Hoad 1986)^(SOED 2002) later influenced by [[fr|analyser]];^(Hoad 1986)^(ODE 2010)^(AHD 2024) Merriam-Webster takes it as an irregular formation from ''analysis'' with ''[[-ize]]''.^(MWU 2024) The French verb is not recorded until the late 17th century, so Weekley thought the English verb was formed directly.^(Etymonline) The source is [[grc|ἀνάλυσις|tr=análusis]], from [[m|grc|ἀναλύω|tr=analúō|t=to unloose, undo]].^(Hoad 1986)^(AHD 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Of material things, to dissect or take to pieces: 1587 in Merriam-Webster,^(MWU 2024) about 1600 in Etymonline;^(Etymonline) SOED dates the verb to the late 16th century.^(SOED 2002)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The physical sense, to dissect or decompose material things, is obsolete;^(SOED 2002) the general sense, to find out the elements of something complex, took over,^(SOED 2002)^(Etymonline) with technical uses in [[chemistry]], [[grammar]] and [[mathematics]].^(Collins 2023) Collins adds the sense to psychoanalyse.^(Collins 2023) Etymonline dates the critical examination of literature to the 1610s and the chemical sense, to resolve a compound into its elements, to the 1660s.^(Etymonline) Johnson spelled it ''analyze'', and Fowler called ''analyse'' and ''analyze'' "equally indefensible" forms.^(Etymonline) In Norfolk and American dialect ''analyze'' was used for "idolize".^(Wright 1898)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1587 – to take apart.^(MWU 2024)

+ * late 16th century – to examine the elements of something.^(SOED 2002)

+ * 1610s – to examine a literary work critically.^(Etymonline)

+ * c. 1638 – the noun ''analyse'', analysis (obsolete).^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024)

+ * 1660s – to resolve a compound in chemistry.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To examine something in detail to discover its structure, meaning or causes.^(AHD 2024)^(Collins 2023)

+ # To separate a substance or problem into its parts, as in a chemical or grammatical [[analysis]].^(AHD 2024)^(Collins 2023)

+ # To [[psychoanalyze]].^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[analyzable]]

+ * [[analyzer]]

+ * [[analyzability]]

+ * [[analyzation]]

+ * [[cryptanalyze]]

+ * [[misanalyze]]

+ * [[overanalyze]]

+ * [[reanalyze]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[analysis]]

+ * [[analyst]]

+ * [[analytic]]

+ * [[lysis]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''Analyze'' is the American spelling and ''analyse'' the British one.^(MWU 2024)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}