diagnostic
/ˌdaɪ.əɡˈnɑ.stɪk/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.83 in modern English
14
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
4
Syllables
9
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
Characteristic of a particular disease.
adj
Characteristic of a particular taxon or clade.
noun
Example Sentences
- "Each language has its own distinct phonological qualities which a counter can tap into with effect. It is not necessarily specific phonemes (though these can sometimes be diagnostic), but rather the frequency and phonotactic distribution of each disparate set of phonemes that go together in the speech stream in certain recognisable ways."
- "A diagnostic assessment"
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁ ▲ Proto-Indo-European *trísinflu. Proto-Indo-European *dwísder. Ancient Greek διά (diá) Ancient Greek δια- (dia-) Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- Proto-Indo-European *-sḱéti Proto-Indo-European *ǵn̥h₃sḱétider. Proto-Hellenic *gignṓskō Ancient Greek γῐγνώσκω (gĭgnṓskō) Ancient Greek δῐαγῐγνώσκω (dĭagĭgnṓskō) Proto-Indo-European *-tis Proto-Hellenic *-tis Ancient Greek -τῐς (-tĭs) Ancient Greek -σῐς (-sĭs) Ancient Greek δῐᾰ́γνωσῐς (dĭắgnōsĭs) ▲ Ancient Greek -σῐς (-sĭs) Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Hellenic *-kos Ancient Greek -κός (-kós) ? Proto-Indo-European *-tós Proto-Hellenic *-tós Ancient Greek -τος (-tos) ▲ Ancient Greek -κός (-kós) ? Ancient Greek -τῐκός (-tĭkós) ▲ Ancient Greek δῐᾰ- (dĭă-) Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- Proto-Indo-European *-tis Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃tisder. Ancient Greek γνῶσις (gnôsis) ▲ Ancient Greek -τῐκός (-tĭkós) Ancient Greek γνωστῐκός (gnōstĭkós) Ancient Greek δῐαγνωστῐκός (dĭagnōstĭkós)bor. English diagnostic From Ancient Greek διαγνωστικός (diagnōstikós), adjective from διαγιγνώσκω (diagignṓskō, “to distinguish, diagnose”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: διαγνωστικός
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˌdaɪ.əɡˈnɑ.stɪk/
- British English: /daɪ.əɡˈnɒs.tɪk/
Inflected Forms
more diagnostic (comparative)
most diagnostic (superlative)
diagnostick (alternative, obsolete)
diagnostics (plural)