Agency Dictionary
diagnostic
nounPronunciation: /ˌdaɪ.əɡˈnɒs.tɪk/
In Portuguese: diagnóstico
Business & OrganizationsWhat does “diagnostic” mean?
An analytical determination or judgment identifying the underlying nature, cause, or source of a problem.
Etymology
From Greek diagnostikos, "able to distinguish", from diagignoskein, "to tell apart, to discern", formed from dia ("through, apart") and gignoskein ("to come to know"). English has used the word since the 17th century as an adjective and as a noun, at first for a symptom that identifies a disease. The usual noun for the judgment itself is diagnosis, from the same Greek verb; as a noun, diagnostic now mostly names a test or tool used to reach it.
Usage note
For the conclusion a doctor or analyst reaches, standard English says diagnosis (plural diagnoses). Diagnostic is chiefly an adjective (a diagnostic test) or the name of the test itself.
Synonyms
- diagnosis
- assessment
- evaluation
- analysis
- finding
Often confused with
- prognosis
- A diagnosis says what the problem is; a prognosis says how it is likely to develop.
Word family
- diagnosis
- diagnose
- diagnostics
- diagnostician
- diagnostically
Rhymes with
- acrostic
Usage examples
As designers (communication doctors), clients come to us with a symptom (a problem), and when we give the diagnostic (the solution), it is rejected.
Concept
Source editions
Where this entry comes from in the Agency editorial.
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