Word 48: ANALOGOUS (un-NAL-uh-gus)

Similar, akin, comparable (KAHM-pur-uh-buul), corresponding

partially,
sharing some aspects of form, function, or content.
An analogy is a partial similarity, likeness, or resemblance that
allows for
a comparison between things: You can draw an analogy between
the
human brain and a computer, between the human heart and a
mechanical
pump, or between an airplane and a bird.
When we see an analogy between two things, we say they are
analogous
, similar but not entirely alike, comparable in some respects.
Analogous
does not apply to things that are identical. For example, brains and
computers and birds and airplanes differ markedly in all but a few
ways, but
in those ways they are analogous.
When things are analogous they share certain features or
particulars; they
are similar enough to form the basis for a comparison. If you say
your
company's management style is analogous to Japanese
management
style, you mean the styles are alike in some respects but not in
others. If
you tell a coworker that your job descriptions are analogous, you
mean they
are similar, comparable, alike in certain ways.