‘Analyses' vs 'Analysis': What's the Difference?

Do you spell the word ‘analyses’ or ‘analysis’? Well, that depends. We’ll cover the correct spelling plus teach you how to use the word in a sentence correctly.

The short answer is that both spellings are correct.

‘Analyses’ is the plural version of the word ‘analysis.’

Analysis vs. Analyses

We’ve already revealed that both ‘analysis’ and ‘analyses’ are correct. The difference is that one is in singular form and the other in plural form.

Analysis vs. Analyses – What is the Plural of Analysis?

Now you know that the plural of ‘analysis’ is ‘analyses,’ so technically, both words are okay to use. 

Definition and Meaning

The Merriam-Webster definition of the word is: “a detailed examination of anything complex in order to understand its nature or to determine its essential features: a thorough study,” “a statement of such an examination,” “separation of a whole into its component parts,” “the identification or separation of ingredients of a substance,” “a statement of the constituents of a mixture,” “proof of a mathematical proposition by assuming the result and deducing a valid statement by a series of reversible steps,” and “a branch of mathematics concerned mainly with its limits, continuity, and infinite series.”

It’s also defined as: “a method in philosophy of resolving complex expressions into simpler or more basic ones,” “clarification of an expression by an elucidation of its use in discourse,” and “the use of function words instead of inflectional forms as a characteristic device of a language.”

Some synonyms of the word include:

• Anatomizing
• Breakdown
• Anatomy
• Deconstruction
• Assay
• Dissection

A Brief History

The first known use of the word was in 1581, and it meant the same thing it does today (the second given definition).

The word was borrowed from Medieval Latin and Greek (analysis), which meant “losing, releasing, breaking something down into its elements, solution of a problem.”

It also comes from the word analyein, which means “to loosen, undo, dissolve, resolve into constituent elements.”

How to Use ‘Analysis’ and ‘Analyses’ in a Sentence

Now that we’re a bit more familiar with both words let’s see how to use both versions of the word in a sentence correctly.

Take a look at how to use ‘analysis’ in a sentence correctly:

• This analysis of Romeo and Juliet is way off.
• My organization performed an analysis of employee work behavior.
• This article is an analysis of the banking industry.
• After all, the analysis did show that the company isn’t utilizing all of its resources.

Now let’s see some examples of how to use ‘analyses’ correctly:

• We’ve performed several analyses, and I finally have the results.
• The analyses of the events of the past two weeks were thorough.
• The analyses showed we’ll need about 90 percent more funding to complete the project.
• We've done several analyses, all with no conclusive results.

Concluding Thoughts on ‘Analyses’ and ‘Analysis’

To recap, we’ve learned that ‘analysis’ is the singular version of ‘analysis,’ so we can use both words but in different contexts. When there’s more than one, you use ‘analyses.’

But if you ever get stuck, you can always bookmark this page so you can come back and refresh your memory anytime you need to. We’ve created an entire library dedicated to explaining confusing words and phrases in the English language. Don’t be afraid to take full advantage of it.