INTRO TO MEDICAL TERMINOLOGY
NOTESHEET
MEDICAL TERMINOLOGY
- The process of dividing __________________________ into ____________________.
- _____________ of words will make medical terminology easier to ________________ and
________________________.
ORIGINS
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Word parts generally come from two languages:
o ___________
o ___________
5 BASIC WORD PARTS
-
_______________________
Suffix
_______________________
Combining vowel
Combining ______________
ROOT WORD
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Root Word - ______________ of the word, usually indicates the involved _________ part.
Examples:
o ___________ = heart
o ___________ = head
o ___________ = stomach
o ___________ = cell
A medical term can have one or more root words.
Ex. – cardi/o/thorac/ic = pertaining to _______ and _________
SUFFIXES
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Word ending
o Usually indicates a __________________, _________________, disorder, or
______________________
o Read from the suffix backwards to the root word for the correct meaning.
Suffixes
o Can be ___________ and ___________.
o All medical words have suffixes.
Examplies
o –itis,
o –ic
o –logy
o –lysis
PREFIXES
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Word Beginning
o Usually indicates __________, time, or a ____________________
o Not all medical words have prefixes
Examples
o ao preo hypero sub-
COMBINING VOWELS AND FORMS
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Combining Vowel
o A vowel that links ______ word parts together
o Usually an ‘o’
o Has no meaning of it’s own (EX - ______/__/__________)
Combining Form
o Rood word plus a _______________________.
Examples
o Hemat/oo Cardi/oo Gastr/oo Oste/o-
RULES FOR USING COMBINING VOWELS
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-
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When the ending of the rood word and the ___________ of the suffix are BOTH consonants,
use a ______________________.
o Ex: Hemat/o/logy
When the ending of the root word is a consonant, and the _____________ of the suffix is a
___________, DO NOT use a combining vowel.
o Ex: gastr/it is
o (incorrect would be gastroitis)
A combining vowel is ________________ used when two root words are joined.
o Ex: cardi/o/thorac/ic
A prefix __________________require a combining vowel.
o Ex: epi/gastr/ic
TAKING TERMS APART
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Determine a medical word’s meaning by looking at the ________________ pieces.
o __________________________________________
 All medical terms will have one
o __________________________________________
 Not all medical terms will have one
o __________________________________________
 There may be more than one
o __________________________________________ of each word part as you
separate them.
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REMEMBER
o If you have any doubt about the correct _____________ of a word, use a medical
dictionary (appendix, index) to double check the definition.
SPELLING
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In medicine, _____________ is __________________.
o One wrong letter could mean an entirely different place on the _______ or test to
be performed
o Example
 Ilium (bone in the hip)
 Ileum (part of the small intestine)
What would happen if you ordered the wrong test?????