analyze
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to separate (a material or abstract entity) into constituent parts or elements; determine the elements or essential features of (synthesize ).
to analyze an argument.
- Synonyms:
- break down.
- Antonyms:
- synthesize
-
to examine critically, so as to bring out the essential elements or give the essence of.
to analyze a poem.
- Synonyms:
- explicate
-
to examine carefully and in detail so as to identify causes, key factors, possible results, etc.
-
to subject to mathematical, chemical, grammatical, etc., analysis.
-
to psychoanalyze.
a patient who has been analyzed by two therapists.
Other Word Forms
- analyzability noun
- analyzable adjective
- analyzation noun
- misanalyze verb (used with object)
- nonanalyzable adjective
- nonanalyzed adjective
- overanalyze verb
- reanalyzable adjective
- reanalyze verb (used with object)
- unanalyzable adjective
- unanalyzably adverb
- unanalyzed adjective
- unanalyzing adjective
- well-analyzed adjective
Etymology
Origin of analyze
First recorded in 1595–1605; back formation from analysis (or from its Latin or Greek sources), with -ys- taken as -ize
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“A generation ago, all this collected data, somebody would have had to go through it. Somebody would have had to read it and analyze it, and make inferences from it,” Guariglia said.
From Salon • Apr. 6, 2026
The Artemis astronauts were gearing up Saturday for their long-anticipated lunar flyby, including reviewing the surface features they must analyze and photograph during their time circling the Moon.
From Barron's • Apr. 4, 2026
“When issues are identified, we work to analyze the situation, gather relevant facts and seek a resolution,” Scullary said.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 2, 2026
Instead, the justices spent the hearing as they customarily do, engaged in a complex and legalistic discussion about how to analyze ambiguous text and how to weigh historical evidence.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026
Fellow scientists who could analyze the facts and help solve the problem.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
