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analogy

[uh-nal-uh-jee] /əˈnæl ə dʒi/
noun, plural analogies.
1.
a similarity between like features of two things, on which a comparison may be based:
the analogy between the heart and a pump.
2.
similarity or comparability:
I see no analogy between your problem and mine.
3.
Biology. an analogous relationship.
4.
Linguistics.
  1. the process by which words or phrases are created or re-formed according to existing patterns in the language, as when shoon was re-formed as shoes, when -ize is added to nouns like winter to form verbs, or when a child says foots for feet.
  2. a form resulting from such a process.
5.
Logic. a form of reasoning in which one thing is inferred to be similar to another thing in a certain respect, on the basis of the known similarity between the things in other respects.
Origin of analogy
Latin
1530-1540
1530-40; < Latin analogia < Greek. See analogous, -y3
Synonyms
1. comparison, likeness, resemblance, similitude, affinity. 2. correspondence.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2016.
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British Dictionary definitions for analogy

analogy

/əˈnælədʒɪ/
noun (pl) -gies
1.
agreement or similarity, esp in a certain limited number of features or details
2.
a comparison made to show such a similarity: to draw an analogy between an atom and the solar system
3.
(biology) the relationship between analogous organs or parts
4.
(logic, maths) a form of reasoning in which a similarity between two or more things is inferred from a known similarity between them in other respects
5.
(linguistics) imitation of existing models or regular patterns in the formation of words, inflections, etc: a child may use ``sheeps'' as the plural of ``sheep'' by analogy with ``dog'', ``dogs'', ``cat'', ``cats'', etc
Derived Forms
analogical (ˌænəˈlɒdʒɪkəl), analogic, adjective
analogically, adverb
analogist, noun
Word Origin
C16: from Greek analogia ratio, correspondence, from analogosanalogous
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Word Origin and History for analogy
n.

1540s (perhaps early 15c.), from Old French analogie or directly from Latin analogia, from Greek analogia "proportion," from ana- "upon, according to" (see ana-) + logos "ratio," also "word, speech, reckoning" (see logos). A mathematical term used in a wider sense by Plato.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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analogy in Culture
analogy [(uh-nal-uh-jee)]

A comparison of two different things that are alike in some way (see metaphor and simile). An analogy attributed to Samuel Johnson is: “Dictionaries are like watches; the worst is better than none, and the best cannot be expected to go quite true.”

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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