analogy
[ uh-nal-uh-jee ]
/ əˈnæl ə dʒi /
noun, plural a·nal·o·gies.
a similarity between like features of two things, on which a comparison may be based: the analogy between the heart and a pump.
similarity or comparability: I see no analogy between your problem and mine.
Biology. an analogous relationship.
Linguistics.
- the process by which words or phrases are created or re-formed according to existing patterns in the language, as when shoon was re-formed as shoes, when -ize is added to nouns like winter to form verbs, or when a child says foots for feet.
- a form resulting from such a process.
Logic. a form of reasoning in which one thing is inferred to be similar to another thing in a certain respect, on the basis of the known similarity between the things in other respects.
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SYNONYMS FOR analogy
Words nearby analogy
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Example sentences from the Web for analogy
British Dictionary definitions for analogy
analogy
/ (əˈnælədʒɪ) /
noun plural -gies
agreement or similarity, esp in a certain limited number of features or details
a comparison made to show such a similarityto draw an analogy between an atom and the solar system
biology the relationship between analogous organs or parts
logic maths a form of reasoning in which a similarity between two or more things is inferred from a known similarity between them in other respects
linguistics imitation of existing models or regular patterns in the formation of words, inflections, etca child may use ``sheeps'' as the plural of ``sheep'' by analogy with ``dog'', ``dogs'', ``cat'', ``cats'', etc
Derived forms of analogy
analogical (ˌænəˈlɒdʒɪkəl) or analogic, adjectiveanalogically, adverbanalogist, nounWord Origin for analogy
C16: from Greek analogia ratio, correspondence, from analogos analogous
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Cultural definitions for analogy
analogy
[ (uh-nal-uh-jee) ]
A comparison of two different things that are alike in some way (see metaphor and simile). An analogy attributed to Samuel Johnson is: “Dictionaries are like watches; the worst is better than none, and the best cannot be expected to go quite true.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.









