‫ﻛﻠﯾﺔ دﺟﻠﺔ اﻟﺟﺎﻣﻌﺔ‬
‫ﻗﺳم ﺗﻘﻧﯾﺎت اﻟﺑﺻرﯾﺎت‬
‫اﻟﻣﺻطﻠﺣﺎت اﻟطﺑﯾــــﺔ‬
‫اﻟﻣرﺣﻠــﺔ اﻻوﻟﻰ‬
‫م‪.‬م‪ .‬ﺻﺎﻟﺢ ﻋﺑد ﷲ‬
‫‪2015-2014‬‬
‫اﻟﻣﻔردات اﻟدراﺳﯾﺔ‬
‫ﻋدد اﻟﺳﺎﻋﺎت اﻻﺳﺑوﻋﯾﺔ‬
‫اﻟﻣﺟﻣوع ﻋدد‬
‫ﻋﻣﻠﻲ‬
‫اﻟوﺣدات‬
4
2
‫ﻧظري‬
2
‫اﻟﺳﻧﺔ‬
‫اﻟدراﺳﯾﺔ‬
‫اﻻوﻟﻰ‬
‫اﻟﻣﺻطﻠﺣﺎت اﻟطﺑﯾﺔ‬
Medical terminology
‫اﻻﻧﻛﻠﯾزﯾﺔ‬
‫ﺑﺎﻟﻠﻐﺔ اﻟﻌرﺑﯾﺔ‬
‫ﺑﺎﻟﻠﻐﺔ اﻻﻧﻛﻠﯾزﯾﺔ‬
‫اﺳم اﻟﻣﺎدة‬
‫ﻟﻐﺔ اﻟﺗدرﯾس ﻟﻠﻣﺎدة‬
: ‫اھداف اﻟﻣﺎدة‬
‫ ﯾﺗﻌرف اﻟطﺎﻟب ﻋﻠﻰ اﻟﻣﺻطﻠﺣﺎت اﻟﻌﺎﻣﺔ واﻟطﺑﯾﺔ‬:‫اﻟﮭدف اﻟﻌﺎم‬
‫ اﻟﺗﻌرف ﻋﻠﻰ اﻟﻣﺻطﻠﺣﺎت اﻟطﺑﯾﺔ وﺧﺎﺻﺔ اﻟﺗﻲ ﯾﺳﺗﺧدﻣﮭﺎ اﻟطﺎﻟب ﺧﻼل‬:‫اﻟﮭدف اﻟﺧﺎص‬
‫اﻟﻣرﺣﻠﺔ اﻟدراﺳﯾﺔ واﻟﺧﺎﺻﺔ ﺑﻔرﻋﮫ‬
‫اﻟﻣﻔردات اﻟﻧظرﯾﺔ‬
‫ﺗﻔﺎﺻﯾل اﻟﻣﻔردات‬
Introduction- structural analysis- basic rules of medical
word building
Major suffixes: (1)suffixes denoting a state or condition
Major suffixes: (1)suffixes denoting a state or condition
Major suffixes: (2)suffixes denoting medical actions
Prefixes: (1) Prefixes of numbers and measures
Prefixes: (4) Prefixes of size, time and place
Prefixes: (3) Prefixes of direction and position
Prefixes: (4) Prefixes of size, time and place
Prefixes: (4) Prefixes of size, time and place
Prefixes: (5) Prefixes of action
Prefixes: (1) Prefixes of type
Roots
Roots
Word terminals
Conditions
Terms concerning the body as a whole
Terms concerning the skin and its appendages
Terms concerning the gastrointestinal tract
Terms concerning the respiratory system
Terms concerning the cardiovascular system
Terms concerning the blood and lymphatic system
‫اﻻﺳﺑوع‬
‫اﻻول‬
‫اﻟﺛﺎﻧﻲ‬
‫اﻟﺛﺎﻟث‬
‫اﻟراﺑﻊ‬
‫اﻟﺧﺎﻣس‬
‫اﻟﺳﺎدس‬
‫اﻟﺳﺎﺑﻊ‬
‫اﻟﺛﺎﻣن‬
‫اﻟﺗﺎﺳﻊ‬
‫اﻟﻌﺎﺷر‬
‫اﻟﺣﺎدي ﻋﺷر‬
‫اﻟﺛﺎﻧﻲ ﻋﺷر‬
‫اﻟﺛﺎﻟث ﻋﺷر‬
‫اﻟراﺑﻊ ﻋﺷر‬
‫اﻟﺧﺎﻣس ﻋﺷر‬
‫اﻟﺳﺎدس ﻋﺷر‬
‫اﻟﺳﺎﺑﻊ ﻋﺷر‬
‫اﻟﺛﺎﻣن ﻋﺷر‬
‫اﻟﺗﺎﺳﻊ ﻋﺷر‬
‫اﻟﻌﺷرون‬
‫اﻟﺣﺎدي واﻟﻌﺷرون‬
Terms concerning the musculoskeletal system
Terms concerning the urogenital system
Terms concerning the endocrine system
Terms concerning the nervous system
Terms concerning the special senses
Terms concerning the oncology
Specialty related terms
Specialty related terms
Specialty related terms
‫اﻟﺛﺎﻧﻲ واﻟﻌﺷرون‬
‫اﻟﺛﺎﻟث واﻟﻌﺷرون‬
‫اﻟراﺑﻊ واﻟﻌﺷرون‬
‫اﻟﺧﺎﻣس‬
‫واﻟﻌﺷرون‬
‫اﻟﺳﺎدس‬
‫واﻟﻌﺷرون‬
‫اﻟﺳﺎﺑﻊ واﻟﻌﺷرون‬
‫اﻟﺛﺎﻣن واﻟﻌﺷرون‬
‫اﻟﺗﺎﺳﻊ واﻟﻌﺷرون‬
‫اﻟﺛﻼﺛون‬
MEDICAL TERMINOLOGIES
Introduction:Medical terminology is the study of medical vocabulary that covers words
pertaining body systems. Anatomical structures, medical interventions
whether diagnostic or therapeutic, and a variety of disease entities.
It constitutes a language created exclusively for the convenience of those
who work in health care, e.g. medicine dentistry, nursing, laboratory
procedures, radiopathy, physiotherapy …..etc.
It is a concise language in the sense that a medical term gives a meaning that
often takes several words to communicate in ordinary language.
e.g. Gastroenterostomy
means:
surgical anastomosis of the stomach and small intestine
e.g. Retinoscope
means:
Instrument to visually examine the eye.
 Structure of medical terms:
Many words in English and nearly all words in the classical languages are
combinations of roots and affixes. The root of a word contains the basic
lexical meaning and the affixes give the root its shape as a word. Affixes for
the most part are prefixes and suffixes including inflections added before or
after the root respectively. E.g. in English the word love, loves, lover, lovers,
loving, lovingly, unloved and unlovable, the root is love and the various
prefixes (un-) and suffixes (-s, r, -rs, -ing, -ingly, etc) from the foot into
word and modify that word for use in an utterance.
In an English a root may very often functions as an independent word as,
love, hate, smile, milk, these root words are extremely rare in classical
language.
Most medical terms are composed of two or more units usually called
components. Typically a medical term is composed of three components:
A beginning, middle part, and an ending. These are designated as prefix,
root and suffix respectively, hence a typical medical term may be presented
as:
Prefix+root+suffix
As in peri—aden—it is
This typical pattern of a medical term formulation is not a mandatory
prerequisite rule since medical terms are frequently formulated in different
ways:
e.g. prefix ----- root
as in
Micro — cyte
Root — suffix
As in
Arthr —itis
Except for those used in anatomy, most medicl terms are not derived from
single Greek or Latin word, but are combination of two or more roots or
word elements. There may be one unit in a word. If its meaning is complete
without the addition af a prefix or a suffix, it is a root word. However if the
root word followed by a suffix or is preceded by a prefix, it is necessary to
translate these added components to obtain the meaning of the terms.
Some words are made up of more than one root, each of which retains
its basic meaning. Such words are called “compound”.
Gasrt/o/enter/it is
It is worthy to note that:
1. Prefixes and suffixes can never can never stand alone, the must be
attached to roots.
2. Word roots act as building blocks for many prefixes, suffixes ,
anatomical words, medical procedures, laboratory technique and
abbreviations.
Different components of medical terms have to be joined together in
order to ease pronunciation and this is this is the function of certain
letters usually the vowels (a,i,e or o) and most frequently the (o). Thus
the addition of the vowel (o) to either the prefix or root creates a
functional building unit called the combining form (CF). This is the form
capable of combining with other components; in other words, combining
form is either a prefix or a root to which a vowel is added. This fact
allows representing typical medical term formulation as:
Prefic/ o/root/o/suffix
as in
Erythr/o/cyt/o/penia
Erythr/o is a combining form (CF) consisting of erythr+”o”
Cyt/o is a combining form (CF) consisting of cyt+ “o”
Components of a medical term:
a. Prefix- word element of one or more syllables located at the
beginning of a word root or a suffix in order to modify or alter its
meaning
e.g. Hypertension
Monocyte
It can serve as a combining form
e.g. Leuk/o/cyte
leuk ----- is a prefix
“o” ----- is a combining vowel
Leuko ----- is a combining form
b. Word Root (WR) : This is the basic stem word having a complete
meaning without the addition of a prefix or suffix.
It can have the following terms:
I.
II.
Simple word root (WR)
e.g. gastr means stomach
e.g. neph means kidney
Combining form (WR/O) is a word root to which a
combining vowel (ususlly “o”) is added
Gstr/o
Gastr ------ is a word root
“o” ------- is a combining vowel
Gastro ---- is a combining form
e.g. nephr/o
nephr ----- is a word root
“o” ----- is a combining vowel
Nephro ----- is a combining form
III.
Compound word (WR/O/WR) is a combination of more
than one root
e.g. gastr/o/enter/it is
gastr ---- is a word root
“o” -------- is a combining vowel
enter ------ is another word root
gastroenter ---- is a compound word
e.g. nephr/o/sclera/osis
nephr ---- is a word root
“o” -------- is a combining vowel
scler ------ is another word root
nephroscler ---- is a compound word
c. Suffix: this is a word ending consisting of one or more syllables
located at the end of a word root (the part that indicates the
essential meaning) to alter the meaning or indicate the intended
part of speech. Two form of suffixes be discard:
i. Suffix that alters the meaning: this form of word ending has a
complete meaning by itself and can alter the meaning or form a
new word when attached to the end of a word root
e.g. ectomy is a suffix that means surgical excision
Tonsillectomy means surgical excision of the tonsils
ii.
Suffix that indicates the part of speech, usually called “word
terminals”. A word terminals has no meaning by itself and is
used to indicate the intended part of the speech grammer tag
that is used to make nouns, adjectives, plurals, singulars …..etc
e.g.
ic in alcoholic
al in sternal
is in dermis
ia in pneumonia
us in bronchus
ae in pleurae
adjective ending
adjective ending
noun ending
noun ending
singular ending
plural ending
these word terminals are classified into groups according to
their grammatical role e.g. noun endings, adjective ending.
d.
Combing vowels: vowels (a, i, e, o) are usually used to join
different components of medical terms through creating combing
forms. The most commonly used vowel is the “o”
e.g. “o” in hapat/o/megaly
e.g. “i” in pelvi/i/meter
combining vowels are used to connect different word element in
order to make a word pronounceable. The last letter or letters of
the root to which another root or suffix is attached may be
changed. The last vowel may be changed to an “o” or an “o” may
be inserted if it is not already present before a suffix beginning
with consonant as in:
cardi/o/logy
the vowel is usually deleted from a combining form when the next
letter that follows is also a vowel.
e.g. neuritis ---- is a compound of neuro+ itis
the “o” of neuro was deleted because the next letter is “i” from itis.
e.g. proctitis ----- is composed of procto +itis
the “o” of procto was deleted because the next letter is “i” from
itis. However the vowel is usually retained when the next letter
that follows is a consonant.
e.g. osteotome ---- is composed of osteo + tome
the “o” of osteo was retained because the next letter is “t” from
tome.
e.g. thermometer ---- is composed of thermo+meter
the “o” of thermo was retained because the next letter is “m” from
meter.
Structural analysis (definition) of medical terms:
Generally speaking medical terms are composed of bits and pieces
that make up the aforementioned word components namely prefix,
root, and suffix.
Breaking down a word involves a search for the meaning of each
of its unit or components. Each component has a distinct meaning.
When translated separately and then incorporated in to a whole word,
the components give the essential meaning of the entire word.
Although the logic in analyzing medical terms dictates starting with
the root then analyzing the added prefix and suffix, the best policy is
to begin with the suffix and proceed to the prefix and then the root.
The following is the suggested strategy:
a. Define the suffix as (1).
b. Define the prefix or first part of the word as (2).
c. Define the middle part of the word as (3)
e.g. peri card
it is
(2)
(3)
(1)
(1) – it is = inflammation
(2) – peri = around
(3) – card= heart
Now …. Read as:
(1) _______(2) __________ (3)
Inflammation
around
the heart
Remember that exact correspondence should note always be expected
between modern medical term meaning and the ancient language roots from
which the term derives. That is why caution and flexibility are required in
breaking down terms.
e.g. anemia
an – prefix that means without or not
emia – suffix that means blood
incorporating the exact meaning of the two components yields the meaning
“absence or lack of blood” and this differs from the actual meaning of the
term which is “attenuated quality of blood”
Word terminals:
These are suffixes (word ending) that stand for grammar tags. When added
to the end of a word they modify its grammar form.
e.g. noun endings change word roots into nouns, adjectives endings change
word roots in to adjectives and so on. Hence they are indicators of the parts
of speech. They are classified into the following groups:
A. Adjective endings ………….. make adjectives
B. Noun endings ……………. make nouns
C. Verbal endings ….. ………..make verbs
D. Diminutive endings ………..make small version of the thing
E. Plural endings …………….. make plurals
F. Singular endings ………….. make singulars
Word terminals have no meaning by themselves, but as groups have
well defined meanings.
e.g. Adjective endings mean “pertaining to and or relating to”
noun endings mean ‘one who condition of”
the following are examples of the different word terminals in common
use:
1. Adjective endings
These endings are added to word or roots to indicate adjectives.
Meaning: pertaining to/ relating to
Adjective
endings
Meaning
Example
ac
Pertaining to/ relating to
Cardiac
al
Pertaining to/ relating to
Cranial, neural
ar
Pertaining to/ relating to
Muscular, circular
ary
Pertaining to/ relating to
Salivary, pulmonary
Ic
Pertaining to/ relating to
hypodermic
ical
Pertaining to/ relating to
Medical, physiological,
mathematical
ory
Pertaining to/ relating to
Sensory, auditory
tic
Pertaining to/ relating to
Diagnosis, paralytic
ous
Pertaining to/ relating to
composed of/ producing
Fibrous, poisonous,
subcutaneous, nervous,
ant
composed of/ producing
Malignant
ive
Pertaining to/ relating to
Sedative
Id
Pertaining to/ relating to
humid
ible
Pertaining to/ relating to
flexible
ile
Pertaining to/ relating to
Motile
Noun endings :
These endings are added to word roots to indicate nouns.
Meaning: one who / codition (procwss) of/ / a state of being
Noun
Endings
Meaning
Example
Er
One who
Painter, photographer
Or
One who
Flexor, elevator, incisor
Ia
Forms the noun from the pneumonia
root
Is
Forms the noun from the Dermis
root
Ism
Condition of / a state of
being
alcoholism
ist
One who specializes
Chemist, urologist
On
Forms the noun from the Nephron
root
Y
Condition (process) of
Myopathy
Ure
Condition of / a state of
being
fracture
Ity
Condition (process) of /
a state of being
Acidity
2. Verbal Endings:
These endings are added to nouns or adjectives to make verbs.
Meaning: to use, to act like, to subject to, make into
Verbal
endings
Meaning
Example
Ize
to use, to act like, to
subject to, to make into
Oxidize
Ate
to use, to act like, to
subject to, to make into
Ligate, duplicate
3. Diminutive Endings
These endings are added to word roots to indicate a small version of the
thing.
Indicate by the word root meaning: little, small, minute
Diminutive
Endings
Meaning
Examples
Ole
Little, small, minute
arteriole
Icle
Little, small, minute
particle
Ula
Little, small, minute
lingula
Ule
Little, small, minute
Venule, lobule
4. Singular and plural endings:
These endings are added to word roots to indicate the singular or plural
forms:
Singular
endings
Plural endings
Examples
A
ae
Pleura
bursa
Plurae
bursae
Ax
aces
thorax
thoraces
Is
es
Diagnosis
Epididymis
Psychosis
Naris
pelvis
Diagnoses
Epididymes
Psychoses
Nares
pelves
Ix
Ex
ices
Appendix
Cervix
Apex
index
Appendices
Cervices
Apices
indices
On
a
Ganglion
phenomenon
Ganglia
phenomena
Um
a
Bacterium
Atrium
ovum
Bacteria
Atria
ova
Us
i
era
Bronchus
Uterus
viscus
Bronchi
Uteri
viscera
Y
ies
deformity
deformities
Ma
mata
carcinoma
carcinomata
Nx
ges
phalanx
phalanges
En
Ina
lumen
lumina
Pronunciation: medical terms are hard to pronounce specially if one has
never heard them spoken.
The following are some shortcuts that will provide some help:
Ae and oe : are pronounced …… (ee)
e.g. ae...... bursae, pleural
oe ...... coelom
ch: is sometimes pronounced like ……. (k)
e.g. cronic, cholesterol
ps: is pronounced like …….(s)
e.g. psychosis, psychology
pn: is pronounced with:
A. only the (n) sound (at the beginning of the word)
e.g. pneumonia, pneumococcus
B. a hard (p) and a hard (n) ( in the middle of the word)
e.g.apnea, orthopnea
c and g: are given:
a- Te soft sound of (s) and (j) respectively before (e, I and y) in
words of both Greek and Latin origin
e.g. : cerebral, cilia, cytoplasm
generic, giant
b- The harsh sound before other letters
e.g. cardiac, coronary
gastric, gonads
e and es: when forming the final letter or letters of a word, are often
pronounced as separate syllables
e.g. rate, (ree’tee)
e.g. nares (nay’reez)
i: at the end of the word (to form a plural) is pronounced “eye”
e.g. bronchi, fungi
All other vowels and consonants have ordinary English sound.
Terms pertaining to the body as a whole:
Anatomic division of the abdomen (fig.1)
Hypochondriac regions (upper lateral regions beneath the ribs)…
Epigastric region (region of the pit of the stomach)……
Lumbar regions (middle, lateral, regions) ….
Umbilical region (region of the naval) …….
Iliac regions (lower lateral regions) …..
Hypogastric region ( region below the umbilicus)…..
Fig.1. abdomen divided in to nine region by two horizontal planes . And two
sagittal planes.
Clinical division of the abdomen (fig.2)
Upper right quadrant ……….URQ
Upper left quadrant ………… ULQ
Lower right quadrant ……. LRQ
Lower left quadrant ………... LLQ
Anatomic division of the back cervical region ….. neck
Thoracic region …………………………………. chest
Lumbar region …………………………………... lumbar
Sacral region ……………………………………. sacrum
Position and direction (fig. 3)
Afferent- conducting toward a structure.Anterior or ventral- front of the
body (not synonymous in lower limb)
Central – toward the center
Deep – away from the surface
Distal or peripheral – away from the beginning of a structure away from
the center
Efferent – conducting away from a structure
Inferior or caudal – away from the head, situated below another structure.
Intermediate – between median and lateral.
Lateral- toward the side
Medial – toward the median plane.
Median – in the middle of a structure.
Posterior or dorsal – back of the body ( not synonymous in lower limb)
Proximal – toward the beginning of a structure
Superficial - near the surface.
Superior or cephalic – toward the head, situated above another structures.
Planes of the body (fig.4,5)
Frontal or coronal – vertical plane parallel to the coronal suture of the skull
it divide the body or structure into anterior and posterior portions.
Horizontal – plane parallel to the horizon.
Longitudinal – plane parallel to the long axis of the structures
Median – lengthwise plane that divides the body or structure into right and
left halves.
Sagittal - any vertical plane parallel to the sagittal structure of the skull and
the median plane.
Transverse – plane at the right angle to the long axis of a structure.
Fig.3 Position and direction of the planes
Fig.4 Planes of the body
Fig.5 Planes of the body
Anatomic position:
Anatomists all over the world apply anatomic terms to the body as through it
were in what is known as the anatomic position, the body is erect, the eyes
look straight to the front, the upper limbs hang at the sides with the palms
facing forward, and the lower limbs are parallel with the toes pointing
forward. Whether the body lies face upward or downward, or in any other
position and relationships of structure are always described as if the body
were in the anatomic position.
Prefixes of number, size and measurement:
Prefix
Meaning
Examples
Semi-
Half, partial
Semicircular
Hemi-
Half, partial
hemigastrectomy
Uni-
One
Unicellular, uniform, unilaterall
Mon/o/
One
Monocyte
Bi-
Two
Double
Both
Twice
Biceps, biconvex, bifocals, bifurcation,
bilateral
di-
Two
Diplegia
Diplo-
Douple
Diplopia
Tri-
Three
Trifocal, triangular, tricuspid
Tetra-
Four
Tetralogy
Quadric-
Four
Quadriceps
Penta-
Five
Pentagon
Hexa-
Six
Hexagonal
Hepta-
Seven
Heptagon
Octa-
Eight
Octagon, octapeptide
Nona-
Nine
Nonagon
deca-
Ten
Decagon
Centi-
10-3
(c)
Centimeter
Milli-
10-3
(m)
Millimeter, milligram
Micro-
10-6
(µ)
Microgram, microorganism
-9
(n)
Nanogram
Nano-
10
Pico-
10-12
(p)
Picolitre
Femto-
10-15
(f)
Femtolitre
(k)
Kilogram
(M)
Megakaryocytic
3
Kilo-
10
Mega-
106
Prefix
Meaning
Examples
Giga-
109 (G)
Gigabyte
Tera-
1012 (T)
Terabyte
Macro-
Large
Macrocyte, macrophage
Megalo-
Large, Great
Huge
Megalomania
Pan-
All
Pancarditis
Poly-
Many, much
Polumorph
Multi-
Many
Multicellular
Hyper-
Over, above
Exceeive, high
Hypertension, hyperglycemia,
hyperactive, hyperthyroidism
Hyp/o-
Under, below,
Deficient, less
Hypotension, hypoglycaemia,
Hypothyroidism, hypothermia
Prefixes of colour:
Prefix
Meaning
Examples
Alb-
White
Albino
Chlor/o-
Green
Chlorophil
Cyan/o-
Blue
Cyanosis
Erythr/o-
Red
Erythrocyte
Glauc/o-
Gray
Glaucoma
Leuk/o-
White
Leukocyte
Melan/o-
Black
Melanocyte
Rube/o-
Red
Rubeosis
Xanth/o-
Yellow
Xanthemia
Prefixes of postion, direction and place:
Prefix
Meaning
Examples
Ambi-
Bothsides
Ambilateral
Ante-
Before, infront of,
forward
Antecubital
Anti-
Against, apposed
to
antibody, antibiotic, antibacterial
Circum-
Around
Circumflex
Contra-
Apposite, against
counter
Contraindication
Dia-
Through, across,
apart, completely
Dialysis
Dors/o-
back
Dorsal, dorsosacral
Ec-
Out of
Ectopic
Ecto-
outside
Ectoderm
Endo-
Within, inside
Endocardium, endocrine
Epi-
Upon, on, over
Epidermis, epigastrium
Exo-
Outside, away
from, outer layer
Exocrine
Inter-
between
Intercostal, interdigital
Intra-
With in
Interocular, intermuscular
Mes/o-
Middle,
intermediate
Mesoderm
Mid-
middle
Midsternum
Meta-
Beyond, after, over Metacarpal, metabolism
Peri-
Around, about
Pericardium
Prefix
Meaning
Example
Post-
After, behind
Postnasal
Prefix
Meaning
Example
Pre-
Before,
infront of
Premature, premalignant
Re-
Back, again
Reflex
Sub-
Under, beneath
Subcostal
Super-
Above, beyond
Supersonic
Supra-
Above, upper
Supraclavicular
Trans-
Across, through
Transport
Ultra-
Beyond in excess
Ultraviolet, ultrasonic
Ventro/o-
Belly,
belly- side
Ventral
Prefix related to type:
Prefix
Meaning
Example
Auto-
self
Autoantibody
Brady-
slow
Bradycardia
Cata-
Down, negative
Catabolism
Co-, con-
Together, with
Congential
Hom/o-
same
Homogeneous
iso-
Equal, alike, same
Isotonic, isotropic
Mal-
Bad, poor
Malabsorption, malnutrition
Neo-
New, recent
Neovascularisation, neoplasm
Tachy-
rapid
Tachycardia
Prefix of negation:
Prefix
Meaning
Example
a-,an-
Without, not, lack
of
Anesthesia, anemia
In-, im-
Not, in, into
Immature, involuntary, inability,
immobilize, injection, inactive
Dis-
Reversal, remove,
absence, apart
Disinfection, dislocation, displacement
Dys-
Bad, difficult,
painful, improper
Dyspepsia, dysuria
Suffix denote a state or condition:
suffix
Meaning
Examples
-algesia
pain
Analgesic
-algesia
pain
Neuralgia
-asthenia
Without strength,
weaken
Myasthenia
-cele
Hernia, protrusion,
swelling
Cystocele
-cide
Kill
Germicide
-clast
To break
Osteoclast
-crine
To secret
Endocrine, exocrine
-dipsia
Thirst
Polydipsia
-ectasis
Expansion, dilaton, Bronchiectasis
stretching
-emesis
vomit
Hematemesis
-emia
Blood condition
Leukemia, hyperglycemia
Suffix
Meaning
Examples
-globin
protein
Haemoglobin
-gram
Record, a writing
Angiogram. Histogram,
electrocardiogram
-graph
Instrument used for Electrocardiograph
recording
-itis
inflammation
Blepharitis, gastritis
-lepsy
seizure
Epilepsy
-logy
Study of
Pathology
-lysis
Dissolution,
loosening,
separating
Hemolysis’, dialysis, thrombolysis
-malacia
softening
Osteomalacia
-megaly
enlargement
Hepatomegaly
-meter
Instrument for
measuring
Thermometer
-oma
tumor
Adenoma, carcinoma
-opia
vision
Presbyopia
-opsia
vision
Heteropsia
-osis
Disease condition
morbid process
abnormal increase
Lymphocytosis
-pathy
disease
Retinopathy
-philia
Attractive for,
to love
Hemophilia
-phobia
Abnormal fear
Hydrophobia
-phylaxis
protection
Prophylaxis
-plasia
Formation
development
growth
Hyperplasia, neoplasia
Suffix related to medical action:
Suffix
Meaning
Examples
-desis
Binding, fixation,
Arthrodesis
stabilization, fusion
-ectomy
Excision, removal
appenicectomy, tonsillectomy
-iatry
Medical treatment
Psychiatry
-plasty
Surgical correction, Arthroplasty
plastic repair,
Surgical repair
-sclerosis
Abnormal
condition of
or hardening
Arteriosclerosis
-scope
Instrument to view
or examine
Gastroscope, microscope , retinosope
-scopy
Inspection,
Retinoscopy, bronchoscopy
examination
Visual examination
-spasm
Involuntary,
contractions
Enterospasm, blepharospasm
-stomy
Creation of an
artificial opening
(mouth) forming a
new opening
Colostomy, cystostomy
-tension
pressure
Hypotension
-therapy
treatment
Chemotherapy, radiotherapy
-tome
Instrument to cut,
Cutting tool
Osteotome
-tomy
Incision into,
Cut into
Thoractomy, laparatomy
Root / combining form:
Root
Meaning
Example
Acr/o-
Extremity
Acromegaly
Aer/o-
Air
Aerobic
Albumin/o-
Albumin, white
protein
Albuminuria
Anthro/o-
Human being man
Anthropology
Bacteri/o-
bacteria
Bactericidal
Bio-
Life, live
Biology, antibiotic, biopsy,
biochemistry
Chem./oChem./iChemic/o-
Chemical, drug
Chemotherapy
Chir/oCheir/o-
hand
Chiroplasty
Cyte-, cyto-
cell
Leukocyte, cytopenia, lymphocyte
Fibro-
fiber
Fibrosis
Fiss-
split
Fissure
Flex-
bend
Flexion, flexor
Glyc/o-
Sugar, sweetness
Glycemia, hyperglycemia
Glycos/o-
sugar
Glycosuria
Hist/oHisti/o-
tissue
Histology
Hydro-
Wet, water
Hydronephrosis
Iatr/o-, iatr-
Treat, cure, related
to, physician or
medicine
Paediatrics
Root
Meaning
Example
Idio-
Individual, distinct, Idiopathic
ones own, separate,
self produced
Kerat/o-
Hard, horny,
cornea, hornlike
Keratomalecia
Lipo-
fat
Lipoma
Norm/o-
Rule, usual,
normal, ideal,
standard
Normotensive
Ox/oOxy-
Oxygen
Hypoxia
Phot/o-
light
Photophobia
Physio-
Related to nature
Physiology, physiotherapy
Psycho-
Soul, mind
Psychiatry
Pyro-
fever
Antipyretic
Sten/o-
narrow
Stenosis
Therap-
Treat, cure
Therapy, physiotherapy, chemotherapy
Therm/o-
Heat, warm
Thermal, thermometer
Tox/oToxitoxic/o-
poison
Toxic, toxicology, toxoid