diagnostic

adjective di·ag·nos·tic \ -ˈnäs-tik \

variants: or less commonly diagnostical play \-ti-kəl\

|Updated on: 12 Aug 2018

Examples: diagnostic in a Sentence

Definition of diagnostic

1 a : of, relating to, or used in diagnosis

a diagnostic tool

b : using the methods of or yielding a diagnosis

diagnostic tests

2 : serving to distinguish or identify

a diagnostic feature

—

diagnostically

play \-ti-k(ə-)lē\ adverb

See diagnostic defined for English-language learners

See diagnostic defined for kids

Examples of diagnostic in a Sentence

Ultrasound is now widely used as a diagnostic tool.
One important diagnostic feature of this condition is a mild rash.

Recent Examples of diagnostic from the Web

The project would include an urgent care center and an imaging diagnostic facility on the ground floor.

— lisa j. huriash, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Hallandale Beach may get 8-story medical building," 12 July 2018
After handing down its Bilski ruling, the high court then asked the Federal Circuit to reconsider a pending case called Mayo v. Prometheus related to a medical diagnostic test that effectively claimed a fact about the human body.

— timothy b. lee, Ars Technica, "Why a 40-year-old SCOTUS ruling against software patents still matters today," 21 June 2018
The diagnostic criteria are still fuzzy, and the potential for overdiagnosis is enormous.

— benedict carey, New York Times, "Endless Gaming May Be a Bad Habit. That Doesn’t Make It a Mental Illness.," 2 July 2018
The American Psychiatric Association has proposed — but not yet fully embraced — a set of diagnostic criteria that are somewhat more detailed.

— melissa healy, Washington Post, "World Health Organization says video game addiction is a disease. Why American psychiatrists don’t," 2 July 2018
In addition to the eye-tracking assessment, toddlers will take traditional diagnostic tests that use games to assess language, learning and social skills.

— maria polletta, azcentral, "Could a Phoenix center's research change how autism is diagnosed?," 2 July 2018
Akin to an addiction to heroin or alcohol, the proposed diagnostic criteria roughly tracked those for substance abuse, such as withdrawal, tolerance, a desire to stop, and negative impact on life activities.

— ian bogost, The Atlantic, "Why Is There a ‘Gaming Disorder’ But No ‘Smartphone Disorder?’," 28 June 2018
But if diagnostic categories are misconceived then treatment may be misapplied.

— The Economist, "A big collaboration is trying to understand diseases of the psyche," 28 June 2018
Yet it was given what many advocates say is a misleading set of diagnostic criteria and a trivializing name, chronic fatigue syndrome, by researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control 30 years ago.

— megan doherty, Chicago Reader, "ME myalgic encephalomyelitis chronic fatigue syndrome CFS Millions Missing Depaul University CDC," 10 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'diagnostic.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of diagnostic

1625

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

Other Medicine Terms

analgesia, angina, diabetes, hepatitis, homeopathy, logorrhea, palliate, pandemic

diagnostic

noun

Definition of diagnostic

1 : the art or practice of diagnosis —often used in plural

2 : a distinguishing mark

—

diagnostician

play \-(ˌ)näs-ˈti-shən\ noun

Examples of diagnostic in a Sentence

the thesis that moral decline is the infallible diagnostic of a decadent society

Recent Examples of diagnostic from the Web

And many poor countries are in desperate need of basic diagnostics and surveillance capabilities, enabling them to detect an outbreak as early as possible gives them an opportunity to quickly respond.

— seth berkley, STAT, "Do we keep waiting for the next pandemic or try to prevent it?," 14 June 2018
Daimler said a function in the onboard diagnostics system prevents overdosing of the AdBlue fluid in nonstandard operating conditions, such as the use of biofuels.

— BostonGlobe.com, "Emissions issues plague Daimler truck engines," 9 July 2018
Over time, Google could license these systems to clinics, or sell them through the company's cloud-computing division as a sort of diagnostics-as-a-service.

— mark bergen, ajc, "Google is training machines to predict when a patient will die," 23 June 2018
Over time, Google could license these systems to clinics or sell them through the company’s cloud-computing division as a sort of diagnostics-as-a-service.

— mark bergen, latimes.com, "Google is training machines to predict when a patient will die," 18 June 2018
The technology is also being used to create cheap diagnostics to detect infections like HPV, dengue, and Zika.

— alessandra potenza, The Verge, "Rampage may stoke CRISPR fears, but scientists say it could be educational, too," 18 Apr. 2018
The potential value of Healthineers slipped from initial estimates due to market volatility and uncertainty about the success of the company’s new line of diagnostics products called Atellica.

— oliver sachgau, Bloomberg.com, "Siemens Raises $5.2 Billion in German IPO of Health-Care Unit," 15 Mar. 2018
Thankfully, there are easy ways to avoid the most common types of car trouble during the winter months—including a hands-free connected car system from Hum by Verizon that can check up on your car diagnostics with a tap on your smartphone.

— Popular Mechanics, "How to Solve 5 Common Winter Car Problems," 10 Jan. 2018
Telematics can also inform your dealer if your car may be in need of service soon or alert and send your exact location and car diagnostics to roadside assistance companies like AAA. 2.

— kim komando, Fox News, "5 essential tech options for your new car," 6 July 2018