Word: analyze (verb)

Associations

To analyze means to examine something carefully in order to understand it better or to draw conclusions from it.

• Example 1: "The scientist will analyze the data from the experiment." (Here, the scientist is looking closely at the data to understand what it means.)
• Example 2: "She needs to analyze her options before making a decision." (In this case, she is considering different choices carefully.)
• Example 3: "The teacher asked the students to analyze the poem." (The students are being asked to look closely at the poem to understand its meaning and themes.)

A well-known synonym for "analyze" is "examine." The main difference is that "analyze" often implies breaking something down into parts to study it, while "examine" can mean looking at something more generally or closely without necessarily breaking it down.

Substitution

You can use several other words or phrases in place of "analyze," depending on the context:

• "Evaluate" (to assess the value or significance)
• "Investigate" (to look into something deeply)
• "Scrutinize" (to examine very carefully)

Each of these words has a slightly different meaning. For example, "evaluate" focuses more on judging the quality, while "scrutinize" suggests a very detailed examination.

Deconstruction

The word "analyze" comes from the Greek word "analusis," which means "a breaking up."

• Prefix: "Ana-" means "up" or "back."
• Root: "Lusis" means "a loosening" or "a breaking." This suggests that to analyze is to break something down into parts to understand it better.

Inquiry

• How do you think analyzing something can help you make better decisions in your life?
• Can you think of a time when you had to analyze a situation? What did you do?
• In what subjects do you think analyzing is most important, and why?