a resolution of anything, whether an object of the senses or of the intellect, into its constituent or original elements; an examination of the component parts of a subject, each separately, as the words which compose a sentence, the tones of a tune, or the simple propositions which enter into an argument. it is opposed to synthesis.-the separation of a compound substance, by chemical processes, into its constituents, with a view to ascertain either (a) what elements it contains, or (b) how much of each element is present. the former is called qualitative, and the latter quantitative analysis.-the tracing of things to their source, and the resolving of knowledge into its original principles.-the resolving of problems by reducing the conditions that are in them to equations.-a syllabus, or table of the principal heads of a discourse, disposed in their natural order.-a brief, methodical illustration of the principles of a science. in this sense it is nearly synonymous with synopsis.-the process of ascertaining the name of a species, or its place in a system of classification, by means of an analytical table or key.