# diagram

Pronunciation: say "DY-uh-gram" /ˈdaɪ.ə.ɡɹæm/

## Noun

1. A drawing, plan, or sketch that shows how something works or how the parts of a whole relate to each other.
   - Simple: A drawing that shows how something works or how its parts fit together.
   - _The engineer sketched a diagram to explain how the cooling system moved heat away._
   - _Each chapter opens with a labeled diagram of the machine's internal parts._
2. A graph or chart presenting data or numerical relationships in visual form.
   - Simple: A graph or chart that shows information using lines, bars, or shapes.
   - _The report included a diagram tracking unemployment across the decade._
   - _Analysts presented a diagram of quarterly revenue beside the written summary._
4. The grid of white and blocked squares that forms a crossword puzzle.
   - Simple: The pattern of black and white squares used in a crossword puzzle.
   - _The setter designed a symmetrical diagram before writing any clues._
   - _Half the diagram was still empty when she got stuck on the long across answer._
6. A functor from an index category to another category, used to pick out a pattern of objects and morphisms that outlines part of the target category's structure.
   - Simple: In higher math, a chosen group of objects and arrows that shows part of a bigger structure's shape.
   - _The proof hinges on a diagram whose index category has just two objects and a single morphism._
   - _The lecturer defined the limit as a universal cone over a diagram indexed by J in C._

## Verb

3. To represent or show something by means of a diagram.
   - Simple: To show something by drawing it as a diagram.
   - _The consultant diagrammed the company's reporting structure for the new hires._
   - _Students learn to diagram complex sentences in grammar class._
5. To plan and assign the workings of a locomotive or train in line with a diagram. *(UK)*
   - Simple: To plan the daily journeys and duties of a train using a timetable chart.
   - _Controllers diagrammed the new electric units across the suburban routes._
   - _The roster clerk had to diagram each locomotive around its maintenance windows._

## Origin

Borrowed from French diagramme, which came from Italian diagramma, from Ancient Greek διάγραμμα (diágramma).

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/diagram (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).