Understanding Medical Terms
At first glance, medical terminology can seem like a foreign language. But often the key to understanding medical terms is focusing on their components (prefixes, roots, and suffixes). For example, spondylolysis is a combination of "spondylo, " which means vertebra, and "lysis," which means dissolve, and so means dissolution of a vertebra.
The same components are used in many medical terms. "Spondylo" plus "itis, " which means inflammation, forms spondylitis, an inflammation of the vertebrae. The same prefix plus "malacia, " which means soft, forms spondylomalacia, a softening of the vertebrae.
Knowing the meaning of a small number of components can help with interpretation of a large number of medical terms. The following list defines many commonly used medical prefixes, roots, and suffixes.
a(n) |
absence of |
acou, acu |
hear |
aden(o) |
gland |
aer(o) |
air |
alg |
pain |
andr(o) |
man |
angi(o) |
vessel |
ankyl(o) |
crooked, curved |
ante |
before |
anter(i) |
front, forward |
anti |
against |
arteri(o) |
artery |
arthr(o) |
joint |
articul |
joint |
ather(o) |
fatty |
audi(o) |
hearing |
aur(i) |
ear |
aut(o) |
self |
bi, bis |
double, twice, two |
brachy |
short |
brady |
slow |
bucc(o) |
cheek |
carcin(o) |
cancer |
cardi(o) |
heart |
cephal(o) |
head |
cerebr(o) |
brain |
cervic |
neck |
chol(e) |
bile, or referring to gall-bladder |
chondr(o) |
cartilage |
circum |
around, about |
contra |
against, counter |
corpor |
body |
cost(o) |
rib |
crani(o) |
skull |
cry(o) |
cold |
cut |
skin |
cyan(o) |
blue |
cyst(o) |
bladder |
cyt(o) |
cell |
dactyl(o) |
finger or toe |
dent |
tooth |
derm(ato) |
skin |
dipl(o) |
double |
dors |
back |
dys |
bad, faulty, abnormal |
ectomy |
excision (removal by cutting) |
emia |
blood |
encephal(o) |
brain |
end(o) |
inside |
enter(o) |
intestine |
epi |
outer, superficial, upon |
erythr(o) |
red |
eu |
normal |
extra |
outside |
gastr(o) |
stomach |
gen |
become, originate |
gloss(o) |
tongue |
glyc(o) |
sweet, or referring to glucose |
gram, graph |
write, record |
gyn |
woman |
hem(ato) |
blood |
hemi |
half |
hepat(o) |
liver |
hist(o) |
tissue |
hydr(o) |
water |
hyper |
excessive, high |
hypo |
deficient, low |
hyster(o) |
uterus |
iatr(o) |
doctor |
infra |
beneath |
inter |
among, between |
intra |
inside |
itis |
inflammation |
lact(o) |
milk |
lapar(o) |
flank, abdomen |
latero |
side |
leuk(o) |
white |
lingu(o) |
tongue |
lip(o) |
fat |
lys(is) |
dissolve |
mal |
bad, abnormal |
malac |
soft |
mamm(o) |
breast |
mast(o) |
breast |
megal(o) |
large |
melan(o) |
black |
mening(o) |
membranes |
my(o) |
muscle |
myc(o) |
fungus |
myel(o) |
marrow |
nas(o) |
nose |
necr(o) |
death |
nephr(o) |
kidney |
neur(o) |
nerve |
nutri |
nourish |
ocul(o) |
eye |
odyn(o) |
pain |
oma |
tumor |
onc(o) |
tumor |
oophor(o) |
ovaries |
ophthalm(o) |
eye |
opia |
vision |
opsy |
examination |
orchi(o) |
testes |
osis |
condition |
osse(o) |
bone |
oste(o) |
bone |
ot(o) |
ear |
path(o) |
disease |
ped(o) |
child |
penia |
deficient, deficiency |
peps, pept |
digest |
peri |
around |
phag(o) |
eat, destroy |
pharmaco |
drug |
pharyng(o) |
throat |
phleb(o) |
vein |
phob(ia) |
fear |
plasty |
repair |
pleg(ia) |
paralysis |
pnea |
breathing |
pneum(ato) |
breath, air |
pneumon(o) |
lung |
pod(o) |
foot |
poie |
make, produce |
poly |
much, many |
post |
after |
poster(i) |
back, behind |
presby |
elder |
proct(o) |
anus |
pseud(o) |
false |
psych(o) |
mind |
pulmon(o) |
lung |
pyel(o) |
pelvis of kidney |
pyr(o) |
fever, fire |
rachi(o) |
spine |
ren(o) |
kidneys |
rhag |
break, burst |
rhe |
flow |
rhin(o) |
nose |
scler(o) |
hard |
scope |
instrument |
scopy |
examination |
somat(o) |
body |
spondyl(o) |
vertebra |
steat(o) |
fat |
sten(o) |
narrow, compressed |
steth(o) |
chest |
stom |
mouth, opening |
supra |
above |
tachy |
fast, quick |
therap |
treatment |
therm(o) |
heat |
thorac(o) |
chest |
thromb(o) |
clot, lump |
tomy |
incision (operation by cutting) |
tox(i) |
poison |
uria |
urine |
vas(o) |
vessel |
ven(o) |
vein |
vesic(o) |
bladder |
xer(o) |
dry |