diagnosis

English

Etymology

From Latin diagnōsis, from Ancient Greek διάγνωσις (diágnōsis), from διαγιγνώσκειν (diagignóskein, “to discern”), from διά (diá, “apart”) + γιγνώσκειν (gignóskein, “to learn”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /daɪəɡˈnəʊsɪs/, X-SAMPA: /daI@g"n@UsIs/

Noun

diagnosis (plural diagnoses)

  1. (medicine) The identification of the nature and cause of an illness.
    • 2012 January 1, Philip E. Mirowski, “Harms to Health from the Pursuit of Profits”, American Scientist, volume 100, number 1, page 87: 
      In an era when political leaders promise deliverance from decline through America’s purported preeminence in scientific research, the news that science is in deep trouble in the United States has been as unwelcome as a diagnosis of leukemia following the loss of health insurance.
  2. The identification of the nature and cause of something (of any nature).
  3. (taxonomy) A written description of a species or other taxon serving to distinguish that species from all others. Especially, a description written in Latin and published.
    • 1992, Rudolf M. Schuster, The Hepaticae and Anthocerotae of North America: East of the Hundredth Meridian, volume V, page viii
      The repeated exposure, over decades, to most taxa here treated has resulted in repeated modifications of both diagnoses and discussions, as initial ideas of the various taxa underwent—often repeated—conceptual modification.
Translations
identification of the nature and cause of an illness

Derived terms

Related terms

identification of the nature and cause of something
written description of a taxon

External links

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Last modified on 20 May 2013, at 17:33