What does ANALOGY mean?

Definitions for ANALOGY
əˈnæl ə dʒianal·o·gy

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word ANALOGY.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. analogynoun

    an inference that if things agree in some respects they probably agree in others

  2. analogynoun

    drawing a comparison in order to show a similarity in some respect

    "the operation of a computer presents and interesting analogy to the working of the brain"; "the models show by analogy how matter is built up"

  3. doctrine of analogy, analogynoun

    the religious belief that between creature and creator no similarity can be found so great but that the dissimilarity is always greater; any analogy between God and humans will always be inadequate

Wiktionary

  1. analogynoun

    A relationship of resemblance or equivalence between two situations, people, or objects, especially when used as a basis for explanation or extrapolation.

  2. Etymology: From analogia, from ἀναλογία, from ἀνά + λόγος

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. ANALOGYnoun

    Etymology: ἀναλογια.

    From God it hath proceeded, that the church hath evermore held a prescript form of common prayer, although not in all things every where the same, yet, for the most part, retaining the same analogy. Richard Hooker, b. v. § 25.

    What I here observe of extraordinary revelation and prophecy, will, by analogy and due proportion, extend even to those communications of God’s will, that are requisite to salvation. South.

    If the body politick have any analogy to the natural, an act of oblivion were necessary in a hot distemper’d state. John Dryden, Absalom and Achitop. Pref. to.

    By analogy with all other liquors and concretions, the form of the chaos, whether liquid or concrete, could not be the same with that of the present earth. Thomas Burnet, Theory of the Earth.

    If we make him express the customs of our country, rather than of Rome, it is either when there was some analogy betwixt the customs, or to make him more easy to vulgar understanding. John Dryden, Juvenal, Dedication.

ChatGPT

  1. analogy

    Analogy is a comparison between two things, typically for the purpose of explanation or clarification, highlighting similarities in some characteristics despite their other dissimilarities. It is a form of reasoning or argument where one thing is inferred to be similar to another thing in a particular aspect, based on the known similarity in other aspects.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Analogynoun

    a resemblance of relations; an agreement or likeness between things in some circumstances or effects, when the things are otherwise entirely different. Thus, learning enlightens the mind, because it is to the mind what light is to the eye, enabling it to discover things before hidden

  2. Analogynoun

    a relation or correspondence in function, between organs or parts which are decidedly different

  3. Analogynoun

    proportion; equality of ratios

  4. Analogynoun

    conformity of words to the genius, structure, or general rules of a language; similarity of origin, inflection, or principle of pronunciation, and the like, as opposed to anomaly

  5. Etymology: [L. analogia, Gr. , fr. : cf. F. analogie. See Analogous.]

Wikidata

  1. Analogy

    Analogy is a cognitive process of transferring information or meaning from a particular subject to another particular subject, and a linguistic expression corresponding to such a process. In a narrower sense, analogy is an inference or an argument from one particular to another particular, as opposed to deduction, induction, and abduction, where at least one of the premises or the conclusion is general. The word analogy can also refer to the relation between the source and the target themselves, which is often, though not necessarily, a similarity, as in the biological notion of analogy. Analogy plays a significant role in problem solving such as, decision making, perception, memory, creativity, emotion, explanation and communication. It lies behind basic tasks such as the identification of places, objects and people, for example, in face perception and facial recognition systems. It has been argued that analogy is "the core of cognition". Specific analogical language comprises exemplification, comparisons, metaphors, similes, allegories, and parables, but not metonymy. Phrases like and so on, and the like, as if, and the very word like also rely on an analogical understanding by the receiver of a message including them. Analogy is important not only in ordinary language and common sense but also in science, philosophy and the humanities. The concepts of association, comparison, correspondence, mathematical and morphological homology, homomorphism, iconicity, isomorphism, metaphor, resemblance, and similarity are closely related to analogy. In cognitive linguistics, the notion of conceptual metaphor may be equivalent to that of analogy.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Analogy

    an-al′o-ji, n. an agreement or correspondence in certain respects between things otherwise different—a resemblance of relations, as in the phrase, 'Knowledge is to the mind what light is to the eye:' relation in general: likeness: (geom.) proportion or the equality of ratios: (gram.) the correspondence of a word or phrase with the genius of a language, as learned from the manner in which its words and phrases are ordinarily formed: similarity of derivative or inflectional processes.—adjs. Analog′ical, Anal′ogic.—adv. Analog′ically.—v.t. Anal′ogise, to explain or consider by analogy:—pr.p. anal′ogīsing; pa.p. anal′ogīsed.—ns. Anal′ogism (obs.), investigation by analogy: argument from cause to effect; Anal′ogist, one who adheres to analogy; Anal′ogon = analogue.—adj. Anal′ogous, having analogy: bearing some correspondence with or resemblance to: similar in certain circumstances or relations (with to).—adv. Anal′ogously.—ns. Anal′ogousness; An′alogue, a word or body bearing analogy to, or resembling, another: (biol.) a term used to denote physiological, independent of morphological resemblance.—Organs are analogous to one another, or are analogues, when they perform the same function, though they may be altogether different in structure; as the wings of a bird and the wings of an insect. Again, organs are homologous, or homologues, when they are constructed on the same plan, undergo a similar development, and bear the same relative position, and this independent of either form or function. Thus the arms of a man and the wings of a bird are homologues of one another, while the wing of a bird and the wing of a bat are both analogous and homologous. [Gr. ana, according to, and logos, ratio.]

Dictionary of Nautical Terms

  1. analogy

    Resemblance, relation, or equality; a similitude of ratios or proportions.

Matched Categories

British National Corpus

  1. Nouns Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'ANALOGY' in Nouns Frequency: #2844

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Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of ANALOGY in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of ANALOGY in Pythagorean Numerology is: 3

Examples of ANALOGY in a Sentence

  1. Andrew Badley:

    A good analogy is to think of your immune system as being a muscle, the more you exercise that muscle, the stronger it will be when you need it.

  2. Mark Hanson:

    I don't think there is going to be meaningful reduction from here, to use a baseball analogy, you are probably in the seventh or eighth inning.

  3. Scott Huettel:

    I'd be very surprised if the algorithm ... has anything more than just superficial analogy to what we would call human intuition.

  4. Murthy Gudipati:

    Deep fried ice cream is really the perfect analogy, because the interior of the comets should still be very cold and contain the more porous, amorphous ice.

  5. Jeff Carbone:

    I think we can use a great Star Wars analogy and say that' the force' will awaken and The Fed will raise that quarter percent today, now we've got to look at how Fed Chair Janet Yellen raises rates. Is it going to be too fast, or too slow or just right ?

Popularity rank by frequency of use

ANALOGY#10000#16296#100000

Translations for ANALOGY

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"ANALOGY." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 25 Apr. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/ANALOGY>.

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