Med Term

DM

Stands for diabetes mellitus, a disease in which the body has difficulty managing and regulating levels of sugar in the bloodstream.

FAS

Stands for fetal alcohol syndrome, a group of mental or physical defects that can develop in an unborn baby from the mother’s alcohol consumption during pregnancy.

FBOA

Stands for foreign-body obstructed airway, an airway that has been obstructed by a foreign object, usually because the object has been swallowed.

FUO

Stands for fever of unknown origin, a diagnosis noted when a patient has a temperature of 101ºF or more several times over the course of three weeks and doctors cannot determine the cause.

Fx

Stands for fracture, a specific way that a bone has been broken.

affix

A categorical term for a word part that is added to a root word to change or modify its meaning—both prefixes and suffixes are affixes.

combining form

A root word with an added vowel at the end in order to make it easier to pronounce when combined with a suffix that begins with a consonant.

prefix

A word part added to the beginning of a word, and often used to indicate location, time, or present status.

root words

Word parts that carry the essential meaning of a word, and cannot be broken down into smaller parts.

suffix

A word part that is added to the ending of a root word to form a new term.

eponyms

A word that is derived from someone’s proper name, typically the discoverer or inventor of the concept the word refers to.

jargon

The specialized technical language used in a profession.

abbreviations

Single words that have been shortened (e.g. doc for doctor).

acronyms

A type of word that is composed of the first letters of other words.

modular

A system in which individual parts can stand alone or be combined into a larger whole.

angi(o)

Means blood vessel, with its combining form used in words like angiography.

arteri(o)

Means artery, with its combining form used in words like arteriosclerosis.

arthr(o)

Means joint, with its combining form used in words like arthritis.

audi

Means sound or to hear, used in words like audiologist.

bio

Means life, such as in the term biologist.

bronch(i)(o)

Means the air passages of the lungs, with the combining form used in bronchitis.

carcin(o)

Means abnormal growth or tumor; used in carcinoma.

cardi(o)

Means heart, with the combining form used in cardiomyopathy.

crine

Means secrete or release, used in endocrinology.

cyt(o)

Means cell, an important part of cytology.

derm(a)(t)(o)

Means skin, with its combining form used in terms like dermatologists.

electr

Means electricity, as in electrocardiography.

encephal(o)

Means brain, used in terms like encephalitis.

gastr(o)

Means stomach, with its combining form used in gastric bypass.

glyc(o)

Means sugar, also known as glucose, as in hypoglycemia.

hemat(o)

Means blood, important in the context of hematology.

hepat(o)

Means the liver, as seen in hepatitis.

hist(o)

Means tissue, important for histology.

lymph(o)

Means a fluid containing white blood cells, used in lymphoma.

my(o)

Means muscle, used in myopathy.

neur(o)

Means nervous system, as used in neurology.

onc(o)

Means tumor, significant in oncology.

opthalm(o)

Means eye, used in ophthalmologist.

oste(o)

Means bone, relevant in osteoporosis.

path(o)

Means disease, used in pathology.

pharmac(o)

Means drug or medication, as in pharmacology.

phleb(o)

Means veins, relevant for phlebotomists.

physi(o)

Means nature, origin, or function, used in physiology.

pulmon(o)

Means lungs, as indicated in pulmonary embolism.

thoraci(c)

Means chest, as in thoracic.

a- or an-

Means no, or without, such as in asepsis.

ab-

Means away from, as in abduction.

ad-

Means toward, as in adduction.

aut(o)-

Means self, used in autograft.

brady-

Means slow, as in bradycardia.

chem(o)-

Means chemistry or drug, as in chemotherapy.

dia-

Means complete or through, as in diagnosis.

dis-

Means to separate or take apart, as in dissection.

dys-

Means abnormal or painful, such as in dysentery.

endo-

Means inside or within, as in endoscopy.

epi-/exo-

Means outside or outside of, as in epicardium and exoskeleton.

eu-

Means good or normal, such as in euglycemia.

hyper-

Means above or above normal, such as in hypertension.

hypo-

Means under or below normal, such as in hypoglycemia.

inter-

Means between or among, as in intercellular.

lyso-

Means dissolve or dissolution, as in lysosome.

macro-

Means large, as in macrophages.

mal-

Means bad or ill, used in malignant.

micro-

Means small, such as in microscope.

mono-

Means single or one, as in monolayer.

neo-

Refers to new.

-ac, -al

Means of or pertaining to, such as cardiac and abdominal.

-algia

Means pain, as in myalgia.

-cidal, -cide

Means killing, as seen in fungicide.

-crine

Means to secrete, or produce and release a substance, as in endocrine.

-cyte

Means cell, as in leukocyte.

-ectomy

Means removal of, as in mastectomy.

-emia

Means blood condition, such as anemia.

-globin

Means containing protein, as in hemoglobin.

-gnosis

Means knowledge, as in diagnosis.

-gram

Means record or picture, as in cardiogram.

-graph

Means an instrument used to record data or a picture, as in electrocardiograph.

-ia and -iasis

Mean condition, as in bradycardia.

-iatry

Means a field in medicine, as in psychiatry.

-ic

Means pertaining to or characterized by, as in narcotic.

-ism

Means condition or process, as in embolism.

-itis

Means inflammation or infection, as seen in tonsillitis.

-lepsis/-lepsy

Mean an attack or seizure, as in epilepsy.

-logist

Means specialist in the field, as in oncologist.

-logy

Means study or practice of a certain field, as in oncology.

-lysis

Means destruction or separation, as in paralysis.

-meter

Means an instrument used to measure, as in thermometer.

-oma

Means tumor, collection, or mass, as in hematoma.

-opsy

Means to view, as in biopsy.

-osis

Means condition or disease, as in neurosis.

-pathy

Means disease or disorder, as in neuropathy.

-phobia

Means a fear of, as in agoraphobia.

-plasty

Means surgical repair, as in rhinoplasty.

-rrhea

Means discharge or flow, as in rhinorrhea.

-rrhage

Means bursting, as in hemorrhage.

-scope

Means an instrument used for viewing or measuring, such as in stethoscope.

-scopy

Means the use of an instrument for viewing, as in endoscopy.

-sis

Means a state of, or condition, as in pneumoconiosis.

-(s)tomy

Means the creation of an opening, as in colostomy.

-trophy

Means nourishment or development, as in hypertrophy.