Reanalyze

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /ɹiːˈæn.ə.laɪz/

Definitions

1. To examine or study something once more in detail to gain further insight or verify results
2. To conduct a second or repeated analysis of data or information to confirm or improve understanding
3. To revisit and assess information anew for accuracy or to extract additional meaning

Etymology: "Reanalyze" is a plain formation: the prefix "re-", meaning "again" or "back," attached to "analyze." The prefix traces back through Latin "re-" to a very old root in the Italic languages, and it reached English by way of Old French and Middle English, where it was used in countless verbs meaning to do something once more. "Analyze," from the Greek "analyein," meaning "to unloose" or "to undo," is the older half of the word, and it carried the sense of breaking something into its parts. Put together, "reanalyze" means taking something apart again to see what it is made of. The pairing is productive rather than rare: English has long attached "re-" to almost any verb that names an act of examining, judging, or describing, so new uses appear whenever someone wants to look again at data, a text, or a decision. The combination is transparent enough that speakers can build it on the spot without needing a dictionary entry.

Synonyms: reassess, reexamine, review