Chapter
Common Prefixes
CHAPTER CONTENTS
Introduction
Categories of Prefixes
Prefixes of Time or Speed
Prefixes of Direction
Prefixes of Position
Prefixes of Size or Number
Exercises
Pre-Quiz Checklist
Chapter Quiz
20
3
CHAPTER 3
COMMON PREFIXES
21
prefix is a word element that comes at the beginning of a word. You may
have noticed that the word prefix itself contains a prefix, namely, “pre-.”
The second part of the word prefix is “fix,” and that additional fact gives
us a perfect definition of prefix: something attached (fixed) in front of or before
(pre-) something else.
Most of the prefixes occurring in medical terms are also found in everyday English. That is, you probably already use most of the prefixes contained in this chapter. Even so, you may not be aware of their exact meanings or even that they are
prefixes, since most English speakers have no reason to analyze the words they use.
For example, when we are admitted to an anteroom, we may not stop to think that
the prefix ante- means “before” and that an anteroom is so called because it is a
room we enter before entering another room. Likewise, when we say, “My workday
starts at 8 AM,” most of us don’t realize that AM is an abbreviation for ante meridiem. In that word, ante- means “before” and meridian means “noon.”
More often than not, medical terms do not include a prefix. But when one is
present, it always comes at the very beginning of the word and is critical to its
meaning. For example, hyperglycemia (“high blood sugar”) and hypoglycemia
(“low blood sugar”) name conditions that are exact opposites. In this chapter, you
will concentrate on learning prefixes by identifying them in common English
words. Learning prefix meanings as parts of common words has two distinct
advantages over learning them as parts of medical terms. The first is that you will
learn the meaning of each prefix as part of a word you already know or have probably at least heard. The second, even more important advantage is that you will not
be prematurely exposed to medical term roots that are best learned in connection
with anatomic systems, all of which are subjects of subsequent chapters.
A
attention to opposite or other similar-sounding prefix pairs, such as hypere Pay
and hypo-. Hyper- means “above” or “beyond normal”; hypo- means “below” or
“below normal.” Also watch out for the pair ante- and anti-, which are pronounced alike
but have different meanings. Ante- means before, and anti- means against.
CATEGORIES OF PREFIXES
Dividing prefixes into functional categories, just as we did with suffixes, makes
them easier to learn. There are four logical divisions:
prefixes of time or speed
prefixes of direction
prefixes of position
prefixes of size or number
Prefixes of Time or Speed
Table 3-1 lists prefixes that indicate a time or speed.
22
PART 1
TABLE 3-1 PREFIXES OF TIME OR SPEED
Prefix
ante-, prebradyneoposttachy-
Refers to
before
abnormally slow rate of speed
new
after
rapid, abnormally high rate of speed
Prefixes of Direction
Table 3-2 lists prefixes that indicate direction.
TABLE 3-2 PREFIXES OF DIRECTION
Prefix
abadcon-, sym-, syncontradia-
Refers to
away from, outside of, beyond
toward, near to
with
against
across, through
Prefixes of Position
Table 3-3 lists prefixes that indicate position.
TABLE 3-3 PREFIXES OF POSITION
Prefix
ecectoenendoepiexexoextrahyperhypoinfrainter-
Refers to
outside
outside
inside
within
upon, subsequent to
outside
within
beyond
above, beyond normal
below, below normal
inside or below
between
CHAPTER 3
TABLE 3-3 PREFIXES OF POSITION (continued)
Prefix
intramesometapanpararetro-
Refers to
inside
middle
beyond
all or everywhere
alongside, like
Backwards, behind
Prefixes of Size or Number
Table 3-4 lists prefixes that indicate size or number.
TABLE 3-4 PREFIXES OF SIZE OR NUMBER
Prefix
bihemi-, semimacromicromonoolig-, oligopanquadritriuni-
A STUDY TABLE
Refers to
two
half
big
small
one
a few
all or everywhere
four
three
one
3-1
COMMON PREFIXES
Prefix
Meaning
abadante-, preantibibradycon-, sym-, syncontradiadysec-, ecto-
away from, outside of, beyond
toward, near to
before
against, opposed
two
abnormally slow rate of speed
with
against
across, through
bad, difficult
outside
COMMON PREFIXES
23
24
PART 1
A STUDY TABLE
3-1
COMMON PREFIXES (co nt inued)
Prefix
Meaning
en-, endoepiex-, exoextrahemi-, semihyperhypoinfrainterintramacromesometamicromono-, unineooligopanparapostquadriretrotachytri-
c
inside
upon, subsequent to
outside
beyond
half
above, beyond normal
below, below normal
inside or below
between
inside
big
middle
beyond
small
one
new
a few
everywhere
alongside, like
after
four
backward, behind
abnormally high rate of speed
three
Exercises
Exercise 3-1 Adding Prefixes of Time or Speed
Add each prefix in the list below to the word appearing next to it and write the definition of
the word thus formed in the space to the right, referring to a standard English dictionary if you
need to.
Prefix
Word Formed
Meaning
room
______________________
______________________
2. brady-
seismic
______________________
______________________
3. neo-
classic
______________________
______________________
4. post-
glacial
______________________
______________________
5. pre-
dominant
______________________
______________________
6. tachy-
meter
______________________
______________________
1. ante-
Word
CHAPTER 3
COMMON PREFIXES
25
Exercises
Exercise 3-2 Adding Prefixes of Direction
Add each prefix in the list below to the word appearing next to it and write the definition of the
word thus formed in the space to the right, referring to a standard English dictionary if you need to.
Word
Word Formed
Meaning
1. ab-
Prefix
normal
______________________
______________________
2. ad-
joining
______________________
______________________
3. con-
centric
______________________
______________________
4. contra-
lateral
______________________
______________________
5. dia-
gram
______________________
______________________
6. sym-
pathetic
______________________
______________________
7. syn-
thesis
______________________
______________________
Exercises
Exercise 3-3 Adding Prefixes of Position
Add each prefix in the list below to the word or word part appearing next to it and write the
definition of the word thus formed in the space to the right, referring to a standard English dictionary if you need to.
Prefix
Word
Word Formed
Meaning
1. ec-
centric
______________________
______________________
2. ecto-
morph
______________________
______________________
3. en-
slave
______________________
______________________
4. endo-
cardial
______________________
______________________
5. epi-
demic
______________________
______________________
6. ex-
centric
______________________
______________________
7. exo-
sphere
______________________
______________________
8. extra-
terrestrial
______________________
______________________
sensitive
______________________
______________________
10. hypo-
9. hyper-
thesis
______________________
______________________
11. infra-
structure
______________________
______________________
12. inter-
collegiate
______________________
______________________
13. intra-
mural
______________________
______________________
14. meso-
sphere
______________________
______________________
15. meta-
physics
______________________
______________________
16. pan-
orama
______________________
______________________
17. para-
legal
______________________
______________________
18. retro-
rocket
______________________
______________________
26
PART 1
Exercises
Exercise 3-4 Adding Prefixes of Size or Number
Add each prefix in the list below to the word appearing next to it and write the definition of
the word thus formed in the space to the right, referring to a standard English dictionary if you
need to.
Prefix
Word
Word Formed
Meaning
1. bi-
annual
______________________
______________________
2. hemi-
sphere
______________________
______________________
3. macro-
cosm
______________________
______________________
4. micro-
scope
______________________
______________________
5. mono-
rail
______________________
______________________
6. olig-
archy
______________________
______________________
7. quadri-
lateral
______________________
______________________
8. semi-
annual
______________________
______________________
9. tri-
angle
______________________
______________________
10. uni-
cycle
______________________
______________________
Pre-Quiz Checklist
_____
_____
_____
Review the four categories of prefixes: time or speed, direction, position, size or
number.
Review the study table.
Check your answers to the exercises with those given in the Appendix and correct any errors before attempting the quiz.
CHAPTER 3
COMMON PREFIXES
27
Chapter Quiz
For each of the following questions or statements, write the answers in the spaces to the right.
1. The prefixes ab- and ad- are opposites; which one
means “toward”?
1. _____________________________
2. The prefix pre- means “before”; what other prefix
means the same thing?
2. _____________________________
3. Write a brief definition of bradycardia.
3. _____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
4. What does the prefix extra- mean in the word
extrasensory?
4. _____________________________
5. What prefix would you use in a term that means
“high blood pressure”?
5. _____________________________
6. Given the meaning of anti-, what would be the
purpose of anticollision radar?
6. _____________________________
_____________________________
7. Given the meaning of the prefix tri-, how many
engines does a trijet have?
7. _____________________________
8. Does the prefix micro- refer to the physical size of a
microscope? If not, what does its presence in the
word tell us?
8. _____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
9. Write a medical term by combining the prefix
endo- with the root cardi/o, meaning “heart,” and
the suffix that means “inflammation.” Using only
your knowledge of these three word elements,
write the best definition you can for the term.
9. _____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
10. The suffix -pnea, meaning “breathing” or
“respiration,” can follow both tachy- and
dys-. Define the terms tachypnea and
dyspnea.
10. _____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________