analogize

Analogize is a verb meaning to draw an analogy between two or more things, or to explain something by showing a similarity to something familiar. It can also mean to relate or compare in a way that clarifies or illuminates. The noun form is analogy; the related noun is analogical reasoning.

Etymology: The term comes from analogia in Latin, from Greek analogia, "proportion," from ana- "up, again" + logia "ratio" or "study." The spelling analogize is common in American English, while analogise is the British variant.

Usage: In rhetoric and pedagogy, speakers and writers analogize to help an audience understand new or complex ideas by relating them to known concepts. In science and philosophy, analogical reasoning uses known relationships to hypothesize about unknown domains; for example, comparing electrical circuits to water flows. In cognitive science, analogy is a fundamental mechanism by which people learn and solve problems.

Caveats: Not all similarities are meaningful; a false or weak analogy can mislead. Analogies are rhetorical devices or heuristic tools, not evidence by themselves. They should be evaluated for the relevance and number of relevant similarities and the presence of crucial disanalogies.

See also: analogy; analogical reasoning; simile; metaphor.