reanalyze
verbUK /ɹiːˈæn.ə.laɪz/ · US /ɹiˈæn.ə.laɪz/
Etymology From re- + analyze.
1
To analyze again.
2
Human sciences, Linguistics, Sciences To analyze a lexeme with a different structure from its original, often by misunderstanding.
- "SOS" has, in contemporary usage, been reanalyzed to stand for "save our souls".
- Thus hamburger (whose true etymology is 'city of Hamburg' + er 'someone from') has been reanalyzed as ham + burger 'burger made with ham.'2006, Shaligram Shukla, Jeff Connor-Linton, “Language change”, in Ralph Fasold, Jeff Connor-Linton, editors, An Introduction to Language and Linguistics, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 296:
- Derived terms
- reanalyzable, reanalyzer
- Related terms
- reanalysis