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Glite Dictionary
to anatomize

to anatomize

1 8.8
To examine something carefully by looking at its parts
  • verb
  • /əˈnætəˌmaɪz/
translation icon : anatomizar
  • Katharine's body is anatomized through pain.

Examples

  • Christ anatomizes his own incarnate self and offers it to the disciples for their consumption as a way to remain pure.

    Academic text (2016)

  • Her characters remain stubbornly flat, their limitations anatomized through some telling absurdity or flimsy, self-justifying illusion.

    Academic text (2000)

  • I've anatomized the military man.

    The Duellists (1977)

  • He was a moralist from the start in his selection of customs and manners to anatomize.

    Academic text (1997)

  • Satan resembles us as readers as we attempt to dissect and to anatomize the power of Milton's poetry.

  • The Virgin's mimetic presence anatomizes Christ's form, making visible the shapes and lines that comprise it.

    Academic text (2006)

  • These trappings anatomize Bertram's failed challenge and self-damning trap, and these trappings reveal Helen's successful response and saving trap.

    Academic text (2005)

  • Any number of examples could be cited, but the one I'd like to bring up here was usefully anatomized in Robert Drews' 1993 book The End of the Bronze Age: Changes in Warfare and the Catastrophe of c. 1200 B.C.

    Blog text (20)

  • Herein lies an impasse for ecofeminism: although the women-nature connection is used to anatomize the twin oppressions, the connection itself may not be able to help ecofeminism establish an alternative to the masculinist model on defensible ground.

    Academic text (2017)

  • The students will anatomize the poem's themes and structures during their literature class.

Synonyms

to analyze
vsto anatomize
  • US
675 3.2

To study something carefully to understand it better

adds emphasis on physically or conceptually breaking things into parts
to break down
vsto anatomize
213 2.8

To separate something into smaller parts to explain or study it

focuses more on careful, detailed analysis by breaking into parts
to dissect
vsto anatomize
43 5.5

To study something closely by breaking it into parts, for example a text or idea

is the broader term for detailed study that breaks things into parts
to explore
vsto anatomize
  • Specialized
16 8.6

To look inside the body during surgery to find a problem

is used for general detailed analysis, not only medical inspection
to take apart
vsto anatomize
7 3.4

To study a text or idea by looking at its parts

is more formal and stresses thorough analysis beyond simple division

How Thorough

to dissect
43 5.5
to anatomize
1 8.8
to examine
868 2.5
to inspect
202 2.5
to scan
127 2.7
glance
222 1.4

Surface Forms

anatomize infinitive
anatomized past
anatomized past participle
anatomizing present participle
anatomizes third person singular

Morphology

anatomize = anatomy (transparent) = anatomy + ize

The verb is a straightforward verb-forming derivation from the noun 'anatomy' using the productive suffix '-ize', giving the sense 'to examine or dissect in detail'.

Etymology

The word anatomize comes from Greek parts ana- ('up') and tome ('cut'), the same root as anatomy. So to anatomize something is to 'cut it into parts' to study or explain it in detail.