In academic context, 'synthesize' means to ...

• A. to summarize briefly
• B. to combine elements to form a coherent whole
• C. to question data
• D. to separate into parts

Answer: (B)

Synthesis means bringing together different elements—ideas, data, or sources—into a new, unified understanding or argument. It’s about integration, not just repeating a source or breaking things down into parts. So it’s not summarizing, which condenses main points; it’s not separating into pieces, which is more like analysis; and it’s not simply questioning data, which is critique. When you synthesize, you connect ideas from multiple places, show how they fit together, and present a coherent framework or interpretation. For example, you might combine findings from several studies with theoretical perspectives to propose a new model that explains a phenomenon more comprehensively than any single source.