Medical Terminology Suffixes

-ac

pertaining to

-al

pertaining to

-algia

pain

-ar, -ary

pertaining to

-blast

embryonic, immature

-cele

hernia

-centesis

surgical puncture to remove fluid

-crine

to secrete

-cyesis

pregnancy

-cyte

cell

-drome

to run

-dynia

pain

-eal

pertaining to

-ectomy

removal of, excision

-emia

blood condition

-er

one who

-fusion

coming together; to pour

-gen

substance that produces

-genesis

condition of producing, forming

-genic

pertaining to producing, produced by or produced in

-globin

protein

-gram

record

-graph

instrument for recording

-graphy

process of recording

-ia

condition

-iac

pertaining to

-ic, -ical

pertaining to

-ior

pertaining to

-ion

process

-ism

process, condition

-ist

specialist

-itis

inflammation

-lapse

to slide, fall, sag

-logy

process of study

-lysis

breakdown, destruction, separation

-malacia

softening

-megaly

enlargement

-meter

to measure

-mission

to send

-oid

resembling

-ole

little, small

-oma

tumor, mass, swelling, collection

-opsy

process of viewing

-or

one who

-ose

pertaining to, full of

-osis

condition, usually abnormal (slight increase in numbers when used with blood cells)

-ous

pertaining to

-partum

birth, labour

-pathy

disease, condition

-penia

deficiency

-phobia

fear

-phoria

to bear, carry, feeling (mental state)

-physis

to grow

-plasia

development, formation, growth

-plasm

formation

-plasty

surgical repair

-pnea

breathing

-ptosis

falling, dropping, prolapsed

-rrhea

flow, discharge

-sclerosis

hardening

-scope

instrument to visually examine

-scopy

process of visually examining (with an endoscope)

-sis

state of, condition

-somes

bodies

-stasis

stopping, controlling

-stomy

new opening (to the outside of the body)

-therapy

treatment

-tic

pertianing to

-tomy

process of cutting, incision

-trophy

development, nourishment

-type

picture, classification

-ule

little, small

-um, -ium

structure, tissue

-us

structure, substance

-y

process, condition