Medical Terminology
Prefixes: Starts with
Prefix
a-, an-
abad-
anti-/contra-
ect-, ecto-, exoend-, endo-, ent
hyper
hyp-, hypo-
infra-
Definition
Example
without; lacking
aphasia - without
speech
anemia - lack of
blood
away from
abductor - leading
away from
toward; near
adductor- leading
toward
adrenal - near the
kidney
against
anticoagulant prevent blood
clotting
contraception prevent
conception/impregna
tion
outer; outside
ectoderm - outer
skin
within; inner
endocranial - within
the cranium
endodontium dental pulp
above,
beyond, hyperglycemia - high
excessive
glucose
hypertension - high
blood pressure
under, deficient
hypothermia - low
body temperature
hypothyroidism thyroid deficiency
beneath; below
infraorbital - beneath
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Medical Terminology
inter-
between
intra-
within
neoperi-
new
around
poly-
many, excessive
sub-
under
the eye
intercostal - between
the rib
intravenous - within
a vein
neonate - newly born
periodontal - around
the tooth
periosteum - around
bone
polycystic - many
cysts
polydipsia excessive thirst
subcutaneous under the skin
sublingual - beneath
the tongue
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Medical Terminology
Suffixes: Ends with
Suffix
-algia, -dynia
-centesis
Definition
pain
-ectomy
surgical puncture to
remove fluid
cut out, excision
-emia
blood condition
-esis
-iasis
-osis
-ity
state or condition
-ia
-y
-gram, -graphy
recording, written
-ites, -itis
inflammation
-oma
tumor
-penia
deficiency, lack of
Example
neuralgia - pain in
nerves
amniocentesis amniotic fluid
appendectomy removal of the
appendix
anemia - low/lack of
red blood cells
leukemia - malignant
blood disease
anesthesia - loss of
sensation
psoriasis - skin
condition
scoliosis - spine
curvature
mammogram - x-ray
of breast
cardiography record of physical or
functional aspect of
the heart
carditis inflammation of the
heart
lymphoma - lymph
tissue
melanoma - tumor of
pigment tissue
glycopenia - sugar
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Medical Terminology
-phagia, phagy
eating, devouring
-plasty
surgical shaping
-pnea
breathing
-rrhaphy
suture
-rrhea
-stomy
flow or discharge
surgical opening
-scopy
to examine
-tomy
cutting; incision
deficiency in tissues
tachyphagia - eating
fast
genioplasty - chin
rhinoplasty - nose
apnea - cessation of
breathing
dyspnea - labored
breathing
gastrorrhaphy stomach
rhinorrhea - nasal
colostomy - into the
colon
tracheostomy - into
the trachea
cystoscopy - bladder
cytoscoy - cells
phlebotomy - into
the vein
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Medical
Terminology
Root Terms
Root
adenblepharcardiderm(at)gastrgravlinguphobspiratthorac-
Definition
[Gr.] gland
[Gr.] eyelid
[Gr.] heart
[Gr.] skin
[Gr.] stomach
[L.] heavy
[L.] tongue
[Gr.] fear
[L.] breathe
[Gr.] chest
Example
adenoma
blepharoplasty
cardiography
dermatitis
gastrostomy
multigravida
sublingual
agoraphobia
inspiratory
thoracoplasty
Other
Terms that reflect an aspect of a disease/condition:
anatomy – science of the structure of the body; relation
of its parts
physiology – science dealing with the function of the body
and its parts
etiology – what causes the disease
diagnosis – determining what disease
therapy – treatment of a disease
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Medical
Terminology
prognosis – forecast of outcome of a disease
signs – objective evidence of a disease; perceptible to the
practitioner
symptoms – subjective sensations of the patient
Drug terminology:
brand name – name used for a drug made by a particular
company (e.g. Snickers)
generic name – name used for the drug, regardless of
which company makes it (e.g. candy bar)
indication – condition for which you are taking the drug
contraindication – condition that would preclude your
taking the drug
precautions – things you need to watch for when taking
the drug
side effects – effects other than the therapeutic effect of
the drug
adverse reactions – potentially harmful side effect
monograph – information on a single drug
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