Medical Terminology Lesson 1: Prefixes and Suffixes

a- or (an- before a vowel or h)

not, without, lacking, deficient

anti- (ant- before a vowel or h; hyphenated before i)

against, opposed to, preventing, relieving

di- (rarely dis-)

two, twice, double

dys-

difficult, painful, defective, abnormal

ec- (ex- before a vowel)

out of, away from

ecto- (etc- before a vowel)

outside of

en- (em- before b, m, and p)

in, into, within

epi- (ep- before a vowel or h)

upon, over, above

exo-

outside, from the outside, toward the outside

hemi-

half, partial; often one side of the body

hyper-

over, above, excessive

hypo- (hyp- before a vowel or h)

under, deficient, below normal

mono- (mon- before a vowel or h

one, single

peri-

around, surrounding

syn- (sym- before a b, p, and m; the n assimilates or is dropped before s)

together, with, joined

Can words have more than prefix? If yes, T or F they are NOT able to consecutively follow each other.

Yes they can and F they CAN follow eachother consecutively

Ex:

exo-anti-gen

cardi-ec-tomy

-a

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

abstract noun-forming suffix: state, condition

Ex:

dyspne-a

rhinorrhe-a

-ac (rare)

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

adjective-forming suffix: pertaining to, located in’

Ex:

cardi-ac

ile-ac

-ia

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

abstract noun-forming suffix: state, condition

Ex:

anem-ia

vagoton-ia

-iac (rare)

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

noun-forming suffix: person afflicted with

Ex:

hemophil-iac

insomn-iac

-iasis

What occurs when used with the prefix lith- (stone)?

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

abstract noun-forming suffix: disease, abnormal condition, abnormal presence of; often used with the name of a parasitic organism to indicate infestation of the body by that organism.

when used alongside lith- it often means formation and/or presence of calculi in the body

Ex:

elephant-iasis

nephro-lith-iasis

-ic

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

adjective-forming suffix: pertaining to, located in; words ending in -ic can be used as both adjectives and nouns

• when used in nouns it indicative of a drug or agent

Ex:

analges-ic

gastr-ic

What other definition can the suffix -ic refer to, other than pertaining to, located in, (when in noun) drugs, or agents?

certain disability or condition

Ex:

parapleg-ic

anorex-ic

-in, -ine

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

noun-forming suffix: form names of substances

Ex:

diox-in

chlor-ine

-ist

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

noun-forming suffix: a person interested in

Ex:

cardiolog-ist

orthodont-ist

-itic

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

adjective-forming suffix: pertaining to; pertaining to inflammation; words ending in -itic can be used both as adjectives and nouns, often indicate a drug or an agent

Ex:

antineur-itic

arthr-itic

-itis

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

noun-forming suffix: indicating an inflamed condition; inflammation

Ex:

gastr-itis

periton-itis

-itides (special)

is the plural form for nouns ending in -itis

• inflammation

-ium (rarely -eum)

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

noun-forming suffix: membrane, connective tissue

Ex:

endometr-ium

pericard-ium

T or F: In a few words the suffix -ium names regions in the body.

True

Ex:

splen-ium

hypogastr-ium

-ma

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

noun-forming suffix: (often) abnormal or diseased condition.

• the combining form for nouns ending in -ma is -mat. Sometimes the final -a drops off the noun

Ex:

ede-ma

trau-mat-ic

sper-m

-osis

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

noun-forming suffix: abnormal or diseased condition

Ex:

nephr-osis

neur-osis

-otic

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

adjective-forming suffix from nouns ending in -osis: pertaining to

Ex:

nephr-otic

sten-otic

-sia

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

abstract noun-forming suffix: state, condition

Ex:

amne-sia

dyspha-sia

-sis

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

abstract noun-forming suffix: state, condition, quality, process, procedure

Ex:

antisep-sis

eme-sis

-tic

How is it related to -sis?

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

adjective-forming suffix from nouns ending in -sis: pertaining to; words ending in -tic can be used as both adjectives and nouns, as nouns, often indicate a drug or agent

Ex:

antisep-tic

eme-tic

-y

Is this suffix abstract noun-forming or abstract adjective-forming? Or both?

abstract noun-forming suffix: state, condition, quality, process, procedure

Ex:

hypertroph-y

microcephal-y

Can a word have more than one suffix within? What is the noun-forming suffix is -iac or -ic affixed to? What occurs due to this pattern

Yes

Sometimes the suffix -iac or -ic is affixed to the noun-forming suffix -sia or -sis. When this occurs, the only vestige left of the noun-forming suffix is the -s

Ex:

amne-sia

amne-s-ic

amne-s-iac

Can a suffix appear in the middle of a word? What must it be affixed to for this to happen?

Yes, the suffix must be affixed to a combining form

Ex:

hyperinsul-in-emia

hepatitis-ic-o-enters-tomy