diagnosis

Pluraldiagnoses

1. 1
   nouncountable or uncountable

   The identification of the nature and cause of a medical condition or illness.

   Her diagnosis of type 2 diabetes came after a series of blood tests.

   Reaching an accurate diagnosis sometimes requires consultation among several specialists.

   Similaridentification, detection

   Note

   Medicine's central sense, and the one the word's Greek parts explain best: diagnōsis comes from a verb meaning "to discern," built from dia "through" and gignōskein "to know." Used without an article, it names the whole art (diagnosis is a challenging art). Used with one, it names a single verdict, usually followed by of (a diagnosis of leukemia), and its plural keeps the Greek ending: diagnoses.

2. 2
   nouncountable or uncountable

   The identification of the nature and cause of something of any kind.

   The engineer's diagnosis traced the system failure to a single overheated component.

   A careful diagnosis of the company's losses revealed poor inventory management.

   Similaranalysis, assessment, evaluation

   Note

   The same word carried out of the clinic and applied to engines, economies and people. James Payn already writes "my diagnosis of his character" in 1887. Like the medical sense, it usually takes of for whatever is examined. When it reports a conclusion, it is often followed by a that-clause: her diagnosis of the economy is that central banks are overcorrecting.

3. 3
   nouncountable

   A written description of a species or other taxon that distinguishes it from all others, especially one written and published in Latin.

   The botanist published a Latin diagnosis distinguishing the new orchid from related species.

   A precise diagnosis lets other taxonomists recognize the species in the field.

   Note

   Here the word names a piece of text rather than an act of judgment. A taxonomic diagnosis gives only what sets a species or other taxon apart, traditionally in Latin, and it is kept separate from the commentary around it. Rudolf M. Schuster's 1992 work on the Hepaticae and Anthocerotae of North America speaks of revising "both diagnoses and discussions" as his ideas of the taxa changed.

4. 4
   verbnonstandardtransitive

   To identify the nature and cause of a condition or problem.

   Specialists diagnosis the disorder by ruling out other causes.

   Experienced mechanics can diagnosis the condition of machinery just by listening.

   2013, Donald A. Norman, The Design of Everyday Things

   Similardiagnose

   Note

   A slip that turns the noun into a verb: to diagnosis a fault instead of to diagnose it. It is rare, and usage guides reject it, so careful writing always uses diagnose. It does surface in print, though. Donald A. Norman's The Design of Everyday Things (2013) says experienced mechanics "can diagnosis the condition of machinery," which makes it worth watching for in your own drafts.

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