Diagram

How to spell diagram

7 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce diagram

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does diagram mean?

1. nounA simplified drawing that shows the structure, parts, or workings of something using lines and symbols.
2. verbTo represent or explain something by means of a drawing made of lines and symbols.

Diagram in a sentence

• noun

  The assembly instructions included a clear diagram of each component.

• verb

  The consultant offered to diagram the entire workflow on the whiteboard.

• noun

  The engineer sketched a diagram to explain how the circuit functioned.

• verb

  It helps to diagram each step before writing the final report.

Where does diagram come from?

Language of origin: Greek

This word traces back to the Greek diagramma, which meant 'a figure marked out by lines' or 'a geometric drawing'. It was built from the verb diagraphein, combining dia, meaning 'through' or 'across', with graphein, meaning 'to write, draw, or mark'. The literal sense was therefore something drawn out across a surface, a notion that fits perfectly with the modern picture of lines mapping a structure or process. The term passed into Latin as diagramma and then through French before settling into English in the early 1600s, originally in mathematical and musical contexts. The graphein root is the same one that gives us 'graph', 'grammar', and 'photograph', which is a helpful reminder that diagram is spelled with a single 'm' and the same 'gram' ending as those relatives.

How the word is built

• dia- (through, across)
• gram (something drawn or written, from Greek gramma)