Medical Terminology Basics: Word Parts, Prefixes, Suffixes, and Combining Forms

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering basic word-building components, combining forms, prefixes, and suffixes from the Medical Terminology lecture notes.

Word Root

The foundation of a medical term that gives a general sense of the word's meaning, often referring to a body system or part, or describing an action.

Combining Vowel

A vowel (typically an "o") that connects word parts to ease pronunciation; used between two word roots or between a root and a suffix starting with a consonant.

Prefix

A word part added to the beginning of a term that modifies the word root by adding meaning such as location of an organ, number of parts, or time (frequency).

Suffix

A word part attached to the end of a term that adds meaning such as condition, disease, or procedure; it is the only mandatory word part in all medical terms.

Combining Form

The format used when writing a word root by itself, written as word root/combining vowel (such as cardi/o).

bi/o

life

carcin/o

cancer

cardi/o

heart

chem/o

Chemical

cis/o

to cut

dermat/o

Skin

enter/o

small intestine

gastr/o

stomach

gynec/o

female

hemat/o

blood

immun/o

immunity

laryng/o

voice box

nephr/o

kidney

neur/o

nerve

ophthalm/o

eye

ot/o

ear

path/o

disease

pulmon/o

lung

rhin/o

nose

a- / an-

without

anti-

against

auto-

Self

brady-

Slow

de-

without

dys-

painful, difficult, abnormal

endo-

within, inner

epi-

above

eu-

normal

ex-

outward

extra-

outside of

hetero-

different

homo-

same

hyper-

excessive

hypo-

below, insufficient

in-

not, inward

inter-

between

intra-

within

macro-

large

micro-

small

neo-

new

para-

beside, abnormal, two like parts of a pair

per-

through

peri-

around

post-

after

pre- / pro-

before

pseudo-

false

re-

again

retro-

backward, behind

tachy-

fast

trans-

across

ultra-

beyond

un-

not

bi-

two

hemi-

half

mono-

one

multi-

many

nulli-

none

pan-

all

poly-

many

quadri- / tetra-

four

semi-

partial, half

tri-

three

-algia / -dynia

pain

-cele

protrusion

-cyte

cell

-ectasis

dilation

-gen

that which produces

-genic

producing

-ia

condition

-iasis / -osis

abnormal condition

-ism

state of

-itis

inflammation

-logist

one who studies

-logy

study of

-lytic

destruction

-malacia

abnormal softening

-megaly

enlarged

-oma

tumor, mass

-opsy

view of

-pathy

disease

-plasm

formation

-plegia

paralysis

-ptosis

drooping

-rrhage

abnormal flow

-rrhagia

abnormal flow condition

-rrhea

discharge

-rrhexis

rupture

-stenosis

narrowing

-therapy

treatment

-trophy

development

Adjective Suffixes

Suffixes added to a root that translate as "pertaining to" (such as -ac, -al, -ar, -ary, -ic, -ous, -tic), allowing the newly formed word to modify another word.

-centesis

puncture to withdraw fluid

-ectomy

surgical removal

-ostomy

surgically create an opening

-otomy

cutting into