Latin Prefixes and Suffixes for Science
These are prefixes and suffixes that are commonly found in science-related vocabulary words. Each week you will
take a vocabulary quiz. We will start with list #1 and continue until we finish. For the quiz, you will be expected to
write down the definition of the prefix/suffix, give an example of a word that uses it, and define the word. Check
the website/calendar for quiz dates.
List #2
biolife
carnmeat, flesh
catabreaking down
cephalhead
chlorgreen
chrom-, -chrome color
cyto-, -cyte
cell
deremoval of
ditwo
dia- (Greek)
through
keltumor or swelling
kerathorn
-ium
List #1
without/not
to, towards
both
away
refers to man
against
ancient
joint
self
two
person who deals
with
part of body
gastrogengeogyn-, -gynous
haploheme-, -hemo
herbherphyperhydroleio-less
lignlin-
List #4
stomach
beginning
earth
female
single
blood
plants
snakes, reptile
above, more
water
smooth
without
wood
line
List #5
hypobelow, less
heterodifferent
homo-, homeo- same, alike
(Greek)
ichthyfish
interbetween
intrainside
isoequal
leuc-, leukwhite
lyso-, -lysis
break apart
lingutongue
lipfat
lith-, -lite, -stone petrify
macrolarge
List #6
mammbreast
margborder, edge
oo-, ovul-, ova- egg
osteobone
path-, -pathy
disease
periaround
photolight
phyto-, -phyte
plant
plasmo-, -plasm
basic
substance
polymany
postafter, behind
prebefore
loc-log
lumenmesomicromillimonomorphmultimyomalacmalleneuroophthalmomni-
List #7
place
word, speech
light
middle
small
1/1000
one
form, body
many
muscle
soft
hammer
nerve
eye
all
List #8
mastbreast
medmiddle
megmillion, great
mela-, melanblack, dark
-mer
part
prifirst
pro-, protofirst, before
pseudofalse
reagain
rhizroot, rootlike
somat-, soma-, -some
body
spermat-, -sperm seed
stoma-, -stome mouth, opening
subbelow
List #9
necrodead
retrobackwards
sym-, syntogether, with
supra-, superabove, over
tel-, teledistant
tetrafour
thermheat
transacross, through
trithree
trophfeed
-tropic
responding to
unione
-cid-, -ciskill, cut, fall
zoo-, zo-, -zoan animal
a-/anadamphianaanthropoantiarchearthrautobi-ist
diplodisendoectoepierythroeuexexoextrakilokinelachrylact-
List #3
two
away from
inside
outside
above
red
proper, real
away from
outer
beyond, outside
thousand
move
tear
milk
caud-derm
-hydrate
-itis
-ology
-meter
-osis
platy-phase
-phage
-phyll
-pod, -ped
rhino-
List #10
tail
skin, layer
involving water
inflammation,
infection
study
measurement
condition, disease
flat
stage
eater
leaf
foot
nose
List #13
andromale
-al
having the
character of
-oid
similar to
boreal
northern
australosouthern
echin-, echino- spiny, prickly
methwith 1 carbon
ethwith 2 carbons
propwith 3 carbons
butwith 4 carbons
anterantho-ap-, -aphapo-, apaqu-ary, -arium
aster-, astr
anther-ation
atmoaudiaur-
List #16
front
flower
touch
away from
water
denotes a place
for something
star
fatty deposit
noun form “the
act of”
vapor
hear
ear
List #19
centihundredth
centrcenter
cerathorn
cerebrbrain
cervicneck
chirhand
chrontime
-chym
juice
circa-, circum- around, about
cirruhairlike
cowith, together
coccseed, berry
List #11
-ase
enzyme
avibird, flying
chondricartilage (ribs)
coel-, -coelom cavity, space w/in
body
lat-, -lateral
side
chemochemicals
cheli-, chelaclaw, pincer
glycoglucose
mycofungus
phycoalgae
-phile, -philic
attracted to, likes
-phobe, -phobic fear of
repulsion
List #12
change
chromosome
split
extreme, beyond
the usual range
-parous, -partum birth, to produce
zygjoined together
parthenovirgin
karyonucleus
oncocancer
nephrkidney
enterointestines, gut
List #14
abaway from
out from
-able
capable of
acto, toward
-aceous
of, pertaining to
acou-, acoushear
adengland
adipfat
aeroair
agrifield, soil
albwhite
aig-, -algia
altoambiamebamniamylanemoangangi-
bacter-, bactr
barbbarobathbene-blast
brachibrachybradybranchibrevbronch-
List #17
bacterium, stick,
club
beard
weight
depth, height
well, good
arm
arm
short
slow
fin
short
windpipe
List #20
glue
cone
against
body
outer layer
world, order,
form
cotylcup
counteragainst
craniskull
cresc-, cretbegin to grow
crypthidden, covered
collconicontracorpcort-, corticcosmo-
muta-ploid
schizoultra-
ante-
caccalorcapillcapitcarcincardicarpcarpal-cell
cen-, cenecente-
List #15
pain
high
both
change, alteration
fetal membrane
starch
wind
choke, feel pain
blood, vessel,
duct
ahead of time,
before
List #18
bad
heat
hair
head
cancer
heart
fruit
wrist
small room,
chamber
now, recent
perce
List #21
diminutive, small
heaped
skin
blue
ring, circle
sac, pouch,
bladder
dactylfinger
decaten
decitenth
deliquescebecome fluid
-cul, -cule
cumulcuticyan-cycle
-cyst
demidendrdentdia- (Latin)
digitdindormdorsdu-, duo-duct
dynamodys-
List #22
half
tree
tooth
day
finger, toe
terrible
sleep
back
two
lead
power
bad, abnormal,
difficult
List #25
carry, bear,
produce
-glen
eyeball
-glob
ball, round
glosstongue
glutbuttock
gnathjaw
-gon
angle, corner
-grad
step
graph-, -gram
writing, record
gravheavy
-gross
thick
gymnonaked, bare
gyrring, circle, spiral
-gest
List #28
between, along,
after
mortdeath
nasnose
neonew, recent
noct-, novnight
-nom, -nomy
law, ordered
knowledge
ocul-, opteye
odontteeth
oligofew, little
ornithbird
otoear
oxysharp, acid,
oxygen
met-, meta-
ececo-elle
-ernia
-en
encephalentom-eous
-err
-escent
esoeury-
List #23
out of, away from
house
small
blood
made of
brain
insects
nature of, like
wander, go astray
becoming
inward, within,
inner
widen
List #26
-hal, -hale
breathe, breath
halosalt
hectorhundred
-helminth
worm
hemihalf
hepar-, hepatliver
hexsix
hiberninter
hidrsweat
hipphorse
histtissue
holoentire, whole
homo
man, human
(Latin)
pachypaleopanpermea-phore, pherpleurpneumopulmorenventrvit-, vivxanthxyl-
List #29
thick
old, ancient
all
pass, go
bear, carry
lung, rib, side
lungs, air
lung
kidney
belly, underside
life
yellow
wood
List #24
bear, carry,
produce
ferroiron
fibrfiber, thread
fiss-, -fid
divided into, split
-flect, -flex
bend
florflower
flu-, fluctflux, flow
folileaf
fractbreak
gammarriage
-fer
List #27
garden
moist, wet
weaving, web
sleep
womb, uterus
person afflicted
with disease
-iasis
disease, abnormal
condition
-ign
fire
in-, il-, im-, ir- not, toward, into
invery, thoroughly
-ine
of, pertaining to
infrabelow, beneath
-ism
a state or
condition
horthygrhyphhyphnohyster-iae
List #30
sugar
flesh
partition, seven
infection,
putrefaction
somnsleep
sonsound
spir-, -spire
breathe
sternchest, breast
toxicpoison
trachewindpipe
saccharsarcsept-septic