ALLIED HEALTHCARE
VOCABULARY BUILDING
HOW CAN YOU REMEMBER NEW
WORDS?
Make Associations – visualize the
word
Create Concept Cards –
cards
create study
Keep a Word Log – use Cornell Notes
Practice! Review! Review!
UNLOCKING THE MEANING OF NEW
WORDS WHEN READING
Use context clues.
Use knowledge of word parts.
Use the glossary of your
textbook.
Last resort:
Use a dictionary
CONTEXT CLUES
To figure out the meaning of a new word –
avoid running to the dictionary
First, try to figure out the meaning from
the context clues –
 What do the surrounding words – the context –
tell you about the unknown word?
HOW IS THE WORD USED IN THE
SENTENCE OR PARAGRAPH?
There are several types of context clues
that can help you figure out the meaning of
an unknown word.
ARE YOU READY?
THE DEFINITION CLUE
Example:
The elderly hospitalized patient felt he was
in an alien environment, a place both
foreign and strange.
Explanation:
The definition is set off by a comma.
Alien means strange or foreign.
DETAILS OR DESCRIPTION
 Example:
The patient was hostile when the doctor
approached the bed. The patient sat up in bed
with his arms folded and looked in the other
direction as soon as the doctor started to speak.
 Explanation:
As described in these sentences, hostile
means unfriendly.
DETAILS
Example:
The patient developed a voracious appetite
after surgery. In one day he ate enough to
equivalent to three days of meals.
Explanation:
Because the patient ate an extraordinary
amount, voracious means extremely hungry
or greedy.
COMPARISONSHOWS HOW THINGS ARE ALIKE
 Example:
The smell of the food from the hospital cafeteria was
as compelling as a magnet’s pull on a paper clip.
 Explanation:
Since a magnet will pull a paper clip to it, the
comparison suggests that the smell of the food had a
strong attraction for a hungry person. Compelling
means forceful .
CONTRAST –
SHOWS HOW THINGS ARE DIFFERENT.
Example:
In America he is an eminent endocrinologist,
even though in Canada he is virtually
unknown.
Explanation:
Even though are signal words indicating the
opposite. Thus eminent means the opposite
of unknown; it means well-known or famous.
WORD PARTS
Roots
Prefixes
Suffixes
RECOGNIZING WORD ELEMENTS IN
HEALTHCARE
 Sixty percent of English words have been adapted from
Latin and Greek. The Latin and Greek languages use a
system of word parts, or word elements, that can be
used alone or in combination in order to form words.
As the combinations of the word parts change, so does
the meaning of the words.
 Many medical terms are made up of these word parts –
so by knowing the meaning of the word part will
enhance your understanding of a medical term. Just
think about how many more words you’ll understand by
learning roots and affixes.
IMPORTANT TERMS:
ROOT: is the stem or basic part of the word which
carries the main meaning of the word.
The root -derm- means: skin
The root -ven- means: vein
PREFIX: is a word part or group of letters added on to
the beginning of a root which can change the meaning of
that root or word.
The prefix intra-, intro- means within
intravenous = relates to something within the vein
intramuscular = relates to something within the muscle
The prefix hypo- means under, below
hypoderm = relates to something below the skin
MORE TERMS
SUFFIX - is a word part or group of letters added
to the end of a root which can alter the word’s
form or part of speech – such as change from a
noun to a verb. Nearly all medical terms have a
suffix.
 The suffix –algia,-dynia means pain
neuralgia = relates to nerve pain
 The suffix –ectomy means excision (cut out)
appendectomy = relates to removal of the appendix
AND MORE TERMS TO KNOW
AFFIX: refers to the word parts that are added to a root; another
name for prefix and/or suf fix
 Intra + ven + ous + ly = “a drug, solution, or other substance
administered into a vein”
 Hypo + derm + ic = relating to the “introduction of drugs or medicine
under the skin”
DERIVATIVE: a word that is formed using the various word parts

gastro (stomach) = gastroenterology, gastroenterologist

-logy (study) = psychology, cardiology, neurology
EXAMPLES OF WORD PARTS AND THEIR
DERIVATIVES :
GYNE
(female)
Gynecology
gynecologist
gynecological
ANOTHER EXAMPLE
THE
DICTIONARY
 Guide Words
 Pronunciation
 Spelling
 Word Meaning
 Parts of Speech
 Word History
WORD ORIGINS - ETYMOLOGY
 Moccasin comes from the Algonquin
Indian word for “shoe.”
 Shampoo comes from the Hindi word
meaning “to press.”
 We study etymology to make it easier to
remember the word.
TEXTBOOK GLOSSARY
Specialized vocabulary is often
found in the glossary of your
textbook.
Example from biology: continental
drift, cranium, cosmopolitan species.
THESAURUS
Check your word- processing
program on your computer
to see if they have a built-in
thesaurus.
A thesaurus is a book with a list of
synonyms for a word.
Example: verb “cause” – originate,
give rise to, bring about, produce,
create, evoke
ENRICHING YOUR VOCABULARY
 Learn Latin and Greek Roots, Prefixes, and Suffixes
 Use Context Clues
 Make Flash Cards or Word Logs
 Read: newspapers, magazines, books, novels, short stories
 Watch television news shows, dramas Be aware of what
people say and the effect of the words they use.
 Use the Internet
 Use the Dictionary – search for etymologies
 See the word, say the word, use the word
 Practice, practice, practice!!!!!