Construction of the Medical Term

Foundational vocabulary and rules for constructing and deconstructing medical terminology, including prefixes, suffixes, root words, and naming conventions.

Prefix

A word part found at the beginning of a word that indicates location, intensity, how, why, where, how much, time, or status.

Suffix

A word part found at the end of a word that indicates condition, status, diagnosis, a procedure, or a specific body part.

Root words

The parts of a medical term derived from Latin or Greek that indicate a structure or condition; they act as the glue that holds the word together.

Combining vowels

Vowels used to make medical words easier to pronounce, such as the "o" in Therm/o/meter.

a/an

A prefix meaning without or lack of.

Angio

A prefix meaning vessels.

Brady

A prefix meaning slow.

Anti

A prefix meaning against, opposite, or opposed to.

Ante

A prefix meaning before or forward.

Uni

A prefix meaning one that modifies the number of the term it is describing.

Bi

A prefix meaning two that modifies the number of the term it is describing.

Tri

A prefix meaning three that modifies the number of the term it is describing.

Mono

A prefix meaning one that modifies the number of the term it is describing.

Centi

A prefix meaning $100^{th}$ that modifies the number of the term it is describing.

Milli

A prefix meaning $1000^{th}$ that modifies the number of the term it is describing.

Nulli

A prefix that modifies the quantity of the term it is describing.

Primi

A prefix that modifies the quantity of the term it is describing.

Semi

A prefix that modifies the quantity of the term it is describing.

Pan

A prefix that modifies the quantity of the term it is describing.

Poly

A prefix that modifies the quantity of the term it is describing.

algia

A suffix pertaining to pain.

Centesis

A suffix meaning puncturing.

Genic

A suffix meaning causing.

Osis

A suffix meaning condition.

Pathy

A suffix meaning disease.

Myo

A common root word meaning muscle.

Nephro

A common root word meaning kidney.

Neuro

A common root word meaning nerve.

Pneumo

A common root word meaning air.

Cardio

A common root word meaning heart.

Glyco

A common root word meaning sugar.

Hepato

A common root word meaning liver.

Arter

A common root word meaning artery.

Arthro

A common root word meaning joint.

Cephalo

A common root word meaning head.

Cyto

A common root word meaning cell.

Gastro

A common root word meaning stomach.

Hemo

A common root word meaning blood.

Acronyms

Abbreviations formed into words, usually with upper case letters.

AMA

An acronym that can stand for either Against Medical Advice or American Medical Association.

CP

An acronym that can stand for either Chest Pain or Cerebral Palsy.

COPD

Acronym for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

PMH

Acronym for Past Medical History.

MI

Acronym for Myocardial Infarction (heart attack).

SOB

Acronym for Shortness of Breath.

UTI

Acronym for Urinary Tract Infection.

Eponyms

Persons, places, or things from which diseases or conditions get their names.

Virginia Apgar

The namesake of the Apgar score for newborns.

Alois Alzheimer

The namesake of Alzheimer’s disease.

Harvey Williams Cushing

The namesake of Cushing’s syndrome.

John Hayden Down

The namesake of Down syndrome.

James Parkinson

The namesake of Parkinson’s disease.

Gabreillo Fallopio

The namesake of the Fallopian tubes.

Homonyms

Words with the same pronunciation as another word but a different meaning (e.g., Humerus and Humorous).

Antonyms

Words that mean the opposite of another word.

Ab vs. Ad

Antonyms where "Ab" means away and "Ad" means towards.

Bio vs. Necro

Antonyms where "Bio" means life and "Necro" means death.

Cephalo vs. Caudal

Antonyms where "Cephalo" means towards the head and "Caudal" means towards the tail.

Ante vs. Post

Antonyms where "Ante" means before and "Post" means after.

Plural Rule #1

Change the “a” ending to “ae” (Example: Axilla to axillae).

Plural Rule #2

Change the “um” ending to “a” (Example: Acetabulum to acetabula).

Plural Rule #3

Change the “us” ending to “i” (Example: Alveolus to alveoli).

Plural Rule #4

Change the “is” ending to “es" (Example: Diagnosis to diagnoses).

Plural Rule #5

Change the “ma” or “oma” to “mata” (Example: Fibroma to fibromata).

Plural Rule #6

Change the “yx”, “ax”, or “ix” ending by changing the “x” to “c” and adding "es" (Example: Thorax to thoraces).

Plural Rule #7

Change the “nx” ending by changing the “x” to “g” and add “es” (Example: Larynx to larynges).

Plural Rule #8

For Latin medical terms consisting of a noun and adjective, pluralize both terms (Example: Placenta previa to placentae previae).

Pn, Ps, Pt

Consonant clusters where the "p" is silent, as in pneumonia, psychiatry, and ptosis.

Ch

A letter combination that produces a "K" sound, as in chronic.

Method for Figuring Meanings

Separate word parts and define them by starting at the end of the word and working toward the beginning.