Dissected

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To methodically cut apart an item for detailed analysis and review
2. To explore and investigate a subject by separating it into its fundamental parts and studying them
3. Carefully cut into parts to study the structure ; thoroughly examine by breaking down into components

Etymology: "Dissected" is the past tense and past participle of "dissect," so its story is the story of that verb. "Dissect" comes from the Latin "dissecare," built from "dis-" (apart) and "secare" (to cut), so the literal sense is cutting something into pieces. English borrowed the verb in the early 1600s, when its use was almost entirely anatomical: to cut up a body or plant to examine its parts. The metaphorical sense came later. By the 1700s writers were applying "dissect" to arguments, texts and literary works, treating a piece of writing as a body to be opened and examined. That shift from flesh to ideas is why a review of a poem or a business plan can be described as a dissection, even though nobody is holding a scalpel.

Synonyms: analyzed, examined, investigated, scrutinized, inspected

Antonyms: combined, integrated, joined, unified