synthesis means the formation of something complex or coherent by combining simpler things. It carries an Arena rating of 1813, earned across 132 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, synthesis ranks #185 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words, #1,272 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words, #1,748 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #4,378 of 17,142 for Most Ingenious Words.
synthesis is pronounced /ˈsɪnθəsɪs/.
Why “synthesis” is a great word
The formation of something complex or coherent by combining simpler or disparate elements. From Latin synthesis, from Ancient Greek σύνθεσις (súnthesis, 'a putting together, composition'), from συντίθημι (suntíthēmi, 'put together, combine'), from συν- (sun-, 'together') + τίθημι (títhēmi, 'set, place'). Unlike analysis, which dismantles a unity to understand it, or aggregation, which merely accumulates items in a heap, synthesis is the alchemical moment when disparate elements cease to be merely adjacent and become something singular. It is the chemist coaxing a novel polymer from base reagents, the composer weaving melody, harmony, and rhythm into a fugue, or the mind reconciling the fragments of a dream into a lingering, poignant sense—proof that the whole is not only greater than its parts, but fundamentally other than them, forged from the raw materials of the world.
Etymology
From Latin synthesis, from Ancient Greek σύνθεσις (súnthesis, “a putting together; composition”), from συντίθημι (suntíthēmi, “put together, combine”), from συν- (sun-, “together”) + τίθημι (títhēmi, “set, place”). Doublet of sandhi.
noun
- The formation of something complex or coherent by combining simpler things.
- Creation of a complex waveform by summation of simpler waveforms.
- The reaction of elements or compounds to form more complex compounds.
- A deduction from the general to the particular, by applying the rules of logic to a premise.
- The combination of thesis and antithesis.
- In intelligence usage, the examining and combining of processed information with other information and intelligence for final interpretation.
- An apt arrangement of elements of a text, especially for euphony.
- The uniting of ideas into a sentence.
- The reunion of parts that have been divided.
- An Ancient Roman dining-garment.e.g.“The Saturnalia was apparently the only occasion, however, when the synthesis could be worn in public with decorum.” — 1918, American Philological Association, Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association, page 132:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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