Science & TechnologyGreek → English
Methodology
/ˌmɛθəˈdɑlədʒi/noun
The system of methods used in a field of study, or the study of such systems.
The Greek roots
μετά
metá
after, in pursuit of
ὁδός
hodós
road, way
λόγος
lógos
study, account
Literally: “study of the road followed”
The story of the word
μέθοδος in Plato and Aristotle meant a pursuit of knowledge, an inquiry, built on the picture of following a road after something. The longer form arrived in English around 1800 and now does two jobs, one honest and one padded: the comparative study of methods, and plain method wearing four extra syllables. The same ὁδός runs through exodus, the road out, and period, the road round.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → scientific coinage → English
- First recorded
- 19th century
Same family
methodexodusperiododometersynod
In a sentence
Reviewers rejected the paper on methodology, not on its conclusions.
Ask what the methodology was before you argue with the number.