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analogous

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

9 characters

Language

English

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "analogous", 9-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "analogous" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "analogous" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

analogous is anEnglishadj. It means: Having analogy, the status of an analogue; corresponding to something else; bearing some resemblance or similar proportion (often followed by "to".) Pronounced /əˈnæl.ə.ɡəs/. Often confused with analogue.

Key facts for analogous
PropertyValue
Headwordanalogous
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdj
IPA/əˈnæl.ə.ɡəs/
Letters9
Frequency rank#18,008
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of analogous in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for analogous is 9 letters long, classified as anadj, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /əˈnæl.ə.ɡəs/. Corpus data places it at rank #18,008 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it.Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 12 documented wrong-spelling variants for analogous, with forms such as "aanlogous", "analgoous", and "anallogous". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "analogue", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin analogus, from Ancient Greek ᾰ̓νᾰ́λογος (ănắlogos); Its English equivalent is analogue + -ous. The application to similar features of organisms is nearly as old as the general sense. Recognizably modern uses of the second sense, distinguishing an… Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is analogous, spelled A-N-A-L-O-G-O-U-S, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    Having analogy, the status of an analogue; corresponding to something else; bearing some resemblance or similar proportion (often followed by "to".)
  2. 2
    Functionally similar, but arising through convergent evolution rather than being homologous.

Etymology

From Latin analogus, from Ancient Greek ᾰ̓νᾰ́λογος (ănắlogos); Its English equivalent is analogue + -ous. The application to similar features of organisms is nearly as old as the general sense. Recognizably modern uses of the second sense, distinguishing analogous from homologous, appear in the mid-19th century.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: aanlogous,analgoous,anallogous,analoggous,analogosu,analogouss,analoguos,analoogus,anaolgous,anlaogous,annalogous,naalogous

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for analogous

Misspelling Variants of "analogous"

aanlogous9analgoous9anallogous10analoggous10analogosu9analogouss10analoguos9analoogus9
Misspelling Variants of "analogous"

Frequency rank: #18,008 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "analogous"?
"analogous" is spelled A-N-A-L-O-G-O-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈnæl.ə.ɡəs/.
What does "analogous" mean?
As an adj, "analogous" means: Having analogy, the status of an analogue; corresponding to something else; bearing some resemblance or similar proportion (often followed by "to".)
What words are commonly confused with "analogous"?
"analogous" is commonly confused with "analogue". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "analogous"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "analogous" is /əˈnæl.ə.ɡəs/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "analogous"?
From Latin analogus, from Ancient Greek ᾰ̓νᾰ́λογος (ănắlogos); Its English equivalent is analogue + -ous. The application to similar features of organisms is nearly as old as the general sense. Recognizably modern uses of the second sense, disting... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter A in our English index:

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.