Medical Terminology Flashcards: Key Definitions and Concepts

In the medical term 'intra/ven/ous', -ven- is the:

prefix

word root or stem word

combining form suffix

word root or stem word

The word part attached to the beginning of a word root in order to modify its meaning is called a(n):

compound term

prefix

suffix

modifier

prefix

In the medical term arthr/itis, -itis is the:

word root

prefix

suffix

combining form

suffix

The word part attached to the end of a word root in order to modify its meaning is the:

prefix

combining form

word root

suffix

suffix

The most common combining vowel is:

'o'

'u'

'i'

'e'

"o"

In the divided medical term arthr/o/pathy, "o" is the:

combining vowel used with both the stem word and the prefix

combining vowel used with both the stem word and suffix

modifier

consonant

combining vowel used with both the stem word and suffix

In the divided medical term sub/hepat/ic, which part is the prefix and which part is the suffix?

-ic and sub

sub- and -hepat-

hepat- and -ic

sub- and -ic

sub- and -ic

The combining form of a stem word is usually made of two component parts, the:

word root and suffix

word root and combining vowel

word root and prefix

prefix and suffix

word root and combining vowel

In the divided medical term osteopor/o/sis, the slash lines (/) indicate that the vowel "o” may be used as part of which word parts?

osteo- and -sis

osteo- and -por

poro- and osis

por- and -osis

por- and -osis

The suffixes -a, -ia, -iac, -al, -ar, -ic, -is, -on, -os, -us, -ium, and -um are used as a generalized actual meaning for the phrase "refers to or Blank ."

to tear away from

without or lack of

pertains to

related to a condition or disease

pertains to

Verb variations of a stem word usually describe:

action taken, condition, or state

symptoms of a condition

body positions or planes of reference

none of the above

action taken, condition, or state

Adjectives usually modify a noun to denote quality, quantity, extent, or:

distinction of the object from something else

the name of an object

action taken

time of day

distinction of the object from something else

Breaking a compound term into its component word parts combined with a vowel or vowels is called:

fracturing

combining terms

structuring

diagramming

fracturing

The combining form or term that literally means "internal organs" is:

viscer/o-

chole/docho-

cardi/o-

an/cone-

viscer/o-

My/o- is the combining form of a word part that means:

heart

fiber

bone

muscle

muscle

The combining form -phas- means:

to speak; utter

to eat

to like; affinity for

to flow

to speak; utter

The prefix that means “change or after” is:

proto-

anti-

meta-

epi-

meta-

The suffix that means "to control or stop" is:

-crit

-stole

-cusis

-stasis

-stasis

The medical term that means "the science of or study of body changes caused by disease” is:

path/o/gen/e/sis

psych/ology

bio/logy

path/o/logy

path/o/logy

The combining form onc/o- means:

growth

gene

tumor

disease

tumor

The medical term for new growth of abnormal tissue or a tumor is:

protoplasm

neonatal

neoplasm

cytoplasm

neoplasm

The literal meaning of the medical term carcin/oma is:

star-like tumor

crab-like tumor

worm-like tumor

non-invasive tumor

crab-like tumor

The correct way to fracture or divide the medical term melanocarcinoma is:

melano/carcin/oma

mel/ano/carcin/oma

melano/car/cin/oma

melanocar/cinoma

melano/carcin/oma

The term 'af/ferent' which may be used to describe sensory impulses is defined as:

conveying toward the center

conveying away from the center

conveying both away from and toward the center

not conveying impulses

conveying toward the center

"I swear by Apollo the Physician and Asclepius and Hygieia and Panaceia..." is the beginning of what famous oath?

Hippocratic

Calcanean

Galenian

Celsus

Hippocratic

If an infection is "chronic" it is characterized by:

little change, slow progression, and long duration

rapid change, slow progression, and short duration

little change, rapid progression, and short duration

rapid change, rapid progression, and short duration

little change, slow progression, and long duration

A tumor of the fibrous and cartilaginous tissue is called a:

fibrochondroma

melanoma

neochondroma

lipochondroma

fibrochondroma

The study of disease is referred to as:

oncology

pathology

immunology

physiology

pathology

The prefix of the term catabolism means:

around, about, circle

away from, remove

down, under, against

through, excessive, in

down, under, against

A fatty tumor is called a(n):

lipoma

neuroma

adenoma

leukemia

lipoma

The term "metastasis" means:

to confine or localize

to heal

to spread

to reduce

to spread

The term "diagnosis" means:

limited knowledge

lack of knowledge

total knowledge

before knowledge

total knowledge

The term "clinical" means:

to test

in the hospital

at patient's bedside

physician's orders

at patient's bedside

The term "prognosis" means:

Full knowledge

No knowledge

After knowledge

Before knowledge

Before knowledge

The term “graphy” means:

Procedure using an instrument to record something

A measurement on a graph

A recording such as a radiograph

Sound waves

Procedure using an instrument to record something

The term "stetho/scop/e" literally means:

instrument to examine the tonsils

instrument to examine the eye

instrument to examine the ear

instrument to examine the chest

instrument to examine the chest

The term "laryngo/scop/y" literally and actually means:

the procedure of viewing and examining the oral cavity

the procedure of viewing and examining the bronchi

the procedure of viewing and examining the voice box

the procedure of viewing and examining the alveoli

the procedure of viewing and examining the voice box

The term "surgery" literally means:

to cut

procedure of working with instruments

procedure of working by hand

to remove an organ

procedure of working by hand

Ninety-nine percent of words in a medical dictionary are composed of nouns, verbs, and:

Adjectives

Adverbs

Prepositions

Pronouns

Adjectives

A compound term is derived from two or more:

Prefixes

Suffixes

Synonyms

Word roots

Word roots

Antonyms comprise medical terms and are words that:

Differ in spelling

Have opposite meanings

Have similar meanings

Sound like each other

Have opposite meanings

The word “afebrile” has a prefix which means:

Against

Away from

Toward

Without or not

Without or not

The word “periosteum” has a prefix which means:

Around

Beside

Near

Under

Around

Which example of the compound term “ankylosing” is fractured correctly?

Ank/yl/o/sing

An/ky/los/ing

Ankylos/ing

An/kylo/sing

Ankylos/ing

In the medical term “pleurisy,” what is the meaning of its suffix?

Condition of

Inflamed

Many

Resembles

inflamed

Which surgical suffix means “procedure or process of cutting out?”

-ec/tom/y

-o/desis

-oplast/y

-o/pex/y

-ec/tom/y

In the medical term “cephalgia,” the combining verb form means:

Pain

Puncture

Swell

To burn

Pain

If a patient has “ptosis” of their eyelid, you can expect to see the eyelid:

Drooping

Injured

Red

Swollen

Drooping

A patient that is “euthyroid” has:

Fluctuating thyroid function

Hyperthyroidism

Hypothyroidism

Normal thyroid function

Normal thyroid function

The prefix extra- means:

Excessive

Over

Above

Outside

Outside

A patient with cyanosis has which skin color?

Blue

Red

White

Yellow

Blue

A patient who is adducting their arm is moving it:

Away from their body

In circles

Over their head

Toward their body

Toward their body

A patient who has undergone a nephrectomy has had which of the following removed?

Kidney

Lung

Ovary

Stomach

Kidney

A patient with rhabdomyolysis has destruction of:

Bone

Cardiac muscle

Smooth muscle

Striated muscle

Striated muscle

An atrophic muscle would appear:

Enlarged

Flabby

Shrunken

Well-defined

Shrunken

John’s physician told him that his disease is idiopathic. This means its cause is:

Infectious

Neoplastic

Side effect of treatment

Unknown

Unknown

What cellular organelle contains chromosomes and has the literal meaning "nut?"

nucleus

cytoplasm

ribosome

nucleolus

nucleus

The combining form hist/o- means:

organ-like

pertaining to a cell

pertaining to the body

tissue or web-like

tissue or web-like

A body part that is formed of two or more types of body tissue and performs one or more specific functions is called a(n):

system

organ

mitochondria

lysosome

organ

The directional term lateral describes movement in which direction:

above the point of reference

below the point of reference

to the side

toward the midline

to the side

The directional term that means "toward the lower end of the body" is:

proximal

medial

caudal

lateral

caudal

The term that describes the direction closest to the point of origin is:

lateral

proximal

medial

distal

proximal

The directional term for movement toward the back of the body is:

superior

dorsal

anterior

ventral

dorsal

The term that describes movement toward the top of the body is:

inferior

dorsal

posterior

cephalic

cephalic

Anterior movement can also be called:

dorsal

ventral

posterior

inferior

ventral

The directional term inferior describes movement:

toward the mid-line

toward the upper end of the body

toward the lower end of the body

toward the back of the body

toward the lower end of the body

The term for the plane that divides the body into right and left halves is the:

transverse

coronal

frontal

sagittal

sagittal

The coronal plane divides the body into the:

proximal and distal portions

anterior and posterior portions

superior and inferior portions

right and left portions

anterior and posterior portions

A trephine is used to remove:

Bone

Blood

Muscle

Skin

Bone

If one is flat on their back and face up, they are in a Blank

adducted

inverted

supine

prone

supine

A plantar wart is located on the:

palm of the hand

ventral surface of the fingers

sole of the foot

phalanges of the feet

sole of the foot

The movement in which a limb is placed in a straight position is called:

pronation

adduction

circumduction

extension

extension

The term "Mammogram" means:

an instrument for recording the breast

a procedure for treating breast cancer

a recording of the breast

excision of breast tissue

a recording of the breast

Which was the first 3D-printed drug approved by the FDA?

Nunolly

Spritam

Digeson

Humidra

Spritam

The term "Intravenous Injection" means:

within a vein

within an artery

between veins

above the vein

within a vein

The term "Phlebotomy" means:

to surgically repair a vein

to cut into an artery

to cut into a vein

to cut into the muscle

to cut into a vein

Which of these conditions would be treated with phakic intraocular lenses?

Depression

Angiostenosis

Myopia

Obesity

Myopia

"Fluoroscopy" is used to record:

moving body parts

soft body tissue

only non-moving body parts

dense tissue

moving body parts

“Angiograms” are used for:

recording the electrical activity of the heart muscles

recording metabolic activity in the brain

recording pictures of blood vessels

recording pictures of bones

recording pictures of blood vessels

The “KUB” examination looks for defects in the:

kidney, ureter, and bowels

kidney, ureter, and bladder

kidney, urinary tract, and back

kidney, urethra, and bowels

kidney, ureter, and bladder

A “Pyelogram” records information about the:

kidney pelvis

kidney ureter

gallbladder

kidney nephron

kidney pelvis

A “Myelogram” is used to record information about which tissue?

cardiac muscle

skeletal muscle

spinal cord and nerves

gastrointestinal smooth muscle

spinal cord and nerves

“X-rays” produce pictures of what type of body tissue and bones?

transparent

epithelia

soft

dense

dense

Which of the following is a noninvasive roentgenography diagnostic technique?

angiogram

PET scan

CAT scan

Gamma Knife Surgery

CAT scan

Which of the following produces a radio frequency radiation pulse image of soft and hard tissue in multiple planes?

MRI

X-ray

CAT scan

PET scan

MRI

LASIK laser surgery can be used to correct:

ocular styes

dry eye

myopia

conjunctivitis

myopia

An "EKG or ECG" is used to record information about electrical activity in the:

brain

heart

spinal nerves

skeletal muscle

heart

Thermo/gram literally means:

heat or temperature/recording

warm/recording

temperature/heat

heating/process

heat or temperature/recording

An electromyogram is used to record information about electrical activity in the:

brain

heart muscle

skeletal muscle

gastrointestinal smooth muscle

skeletal muscle

A PET scan is used to detect metabolism of glucose by the:

spinal cord

brain

lungs

gallbladder

brain

A thallium scan is used to detect damage to the:

heart

nerve

bone

cartilage

heart

The term "Auscult/ation" literally means:

process or procedure for listening

process or procedure for seeing

process or procedure for recording

process or procedure for adjusting bone alignment

process or procedure for listening

The term "Percuss/ion" literally means:

process or procedure of striking

process or procedure of hearing

process or procedure of seeing

process of procedure of recording

process or procedure of striking

The term “ocular” literally means:

refers to the ear

refers to the auditory nerve

refers to the olfactory nerve

refers to the eye

refers to the eye

The term "Sphygmo/mano/meter" literally means:

to measure the pulse by hand

to measure the heart by hand

to measure the respiratory rate by hand

to measure the temperature by hand

to measure the pulse by hand

The procedure of using an instrument that produces high frequency sound waves to produce an image of the size or shape of a body part is called:

ultra/sono/graph/y

cardio/graph/y

radio/graphy

angio/graphy

ultra/sono/graph/y

What uses a high frequency electromagnetic current produced by a microwave device to generate heat within body tissues?

Lithotripsy

Diathermy

Ultrasonography

thermogram

Diathermy

The term "Ophthalmo/scop/e" means:

instrument to examine the ear

instrument to examine the larynx

instrument to examine the eye

instrument to examine the nasal cavity

instrument to examine the eye

A tonometer measures pressure within the:

colon

ear

eye

lung

eye

The term "Nebuliz/er" means:

one who causes a cure

one who causes an injury

one who causes a mist

one who creates a star shape

one who causes a mist