etiology

Or ae·ti·ol·o·gy

[ee-tee-ol-uh-jee]

noun

plural

etiologies 

1. Pathology.

   1. the study of the causes of diseases.

   2. the cause or origin of a disease.

2. the study of causation.

3. any study of causes, causation, or causality, as in philosophy, biology, or physics.

etiology

/ ˌiːtɪəˈlɒdʒɪkəl, ˌiːtɪˈɒlədʒɪ /

noun

1. a variant spelling of aetiology

etiology

1. The cause or origin of a disease, condition, or constellation of symptoms or signs, as determined by medical diagnosis or research.

Other Word Forms

• etiological adjective
• etiologist noun
• etiologically adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of etiology¹

First recorded in 1545–55; from Latin aetiologia, from Greek aitiología “determining the cause of something,” from aití(a) “cause” + -o- -o- + -logia -logy

Example Sentences

Being the journalist I am, from the beginning of this strange and bewildering acoustic saga, I wanted to determine the etiology of my hearing decline.

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Although its etiology is still unclear, previous studies have shown that bipolar disease is highly heritable.

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"This new approach looks at the neuronal differences contributing to the etiology of autism spectrum disorder."

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The program was led by trained instructors with expertise in cardiovascular disease etiology, treatment and prevention.

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Each of the epithets has its own etiology, and some of their origins can be traced to their inception.

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When To Use

What does etiology mean?

The etiology of a disease is its cause or origin.Etiology is also the name for the study of the causes of diseases. It can also refer to the study of the cause of things in other fields, such as philosophy and physics. But it is most commonly used in the context of medicine. In British English, it is spelled aetiology.Example: The doctors have taken some samples and are working to determine the etiology of the disease.