analogisering

Analogisering (often anglicized as analogization) is a broad term used to describe the act of drawing an analogy or making something resemble another by aligning similarities in structure, function, or behavior. The concept spans fields such as linguistics, rhetoric, cognitive science, and logic. Etymologically, it derives from analogy, with roots in Greek, and it is used to refer both to the cognitive process of identifying correspondences and to deliberate applications of those correspondences to explain or persuade.

In linguistics, analogisering denotes the regularization or reanalysis of forms by analogy with more common patterns. For example, speakers may regularize irregular verb forms or noun plurals under the pressure of analogous endings. A common English example is the divergence in the past tense of dive: some speakers use “dived” while others say “dove,” illustrating how analogy with other paradigms can reshape tense forms. In other languages, analogical leveling can gradually reshape inflectional systems over time, reducing irregularities and aligning them with prevailing patterns.

In rhetoric and science, analogisering is a method for explaining unfamiliar concepts through familiar ones by drawing parallels. It can aid understanding but also risks oversimplification or false equivalence if the compared domains differ in relevant respects. In cognitive science and artificial intelligence, analogical reasoning models simulate the human ability to transfer knowledge from a source domain to a target domain based on structural similarities between them.

Overall, analogisering describes a fundamental mechanism by which humans interpret, learn, and communicate by relating new ideas to known patterns, operating across linguistic, cognitive, and communicative practices.