Medical TerminologyFree
Medical Terminology Part by Part
Most medical words are built from a few hundred parts. Learn what each prefix, root and suffix means, then take real words apart and build them yourself.
How it works
Read a word by its parts
You don't have to memorize gastroenteritis. Its parts say what it means.
gastroenteritis
Read part by part: inflammation of the stomach and intestines
In medicine: inflammation of the stomach and intestines, often from infection, causing vomiting and diarrhea
Step 1
Start at the end
The suffix says what is going on: a condition, a procedure, a test.
Step 2
Then go to the start
A prefix says where, when, how many or how much.
Step 3
The root names the thing
In between is the body part or substance the word is about.
Step 4
Vowels join the pieces
A combining vowel, usually o, links a root to the next part. It drops before a part that starts with a vowel, so gastr/o and -itis make gastritis.
Lessons
28 lessons of related parts. Each one shows you its parts, then asks what they mean and has you take real words apart and build them. A few minutes each.
Prefixes
The start of a word: where, when, how many and how much.
Roots, by body system
The middle: the body part, organ or thing the word is about.
Suffixes
The end: a condition, a procedure, a test, or the kind of word it is.
Every word part, A to Z
Each has a page with where it comes from and the medical words built with it. Each meaning was checked against at least two reputable references.
286 parts
- a-, an-without, not
- abdomin/oabdomen
- -acpertaining to
- ad-toward, near
- aden/ogland
- adren/oadrenal glands
- -alpertaining to
- -algiapain
- andr/omale
- angi/ovessel (blood or lymph)
- an/oanus
- ante-before, in front of
- anti-against, counteracting
- aort/oaorta
- append/o, appendic/oappendix
- -arpertaining to
- arteri/oartery
- arthr/ojoint
- -arypertaining to
- ather/ofatty plaque
- audi/ohearing
- aur/iear
- auto-self
- bacteri/obacteria
- bi-two, double
- bi/olife
- blephar/oeyelid
- brady-slow
- bronch/obronchus, bronchial tube
- calc/icalcium
- carcin/ocancer
- cardi/oheart
- -celehernia, protrusion, swelling
- -centesissurgical puncture to remove fluid
- cerebr/ocerebrum, the largest part of the brain
- cervic/oneck; cervix (neck of the uterus)
- chol/ebile, gall
- cholecyst/ogallbladder
- chondr/ocartilage
- circum-around, surrounding
- col/ocolon
- colp/ovagina
- cost/orib
- crani/oskull (cranium)
- cutane/oskin
- cyan/oblue
- cyst/ourinary bladder; sac
- -cytecell
- cyt/ocell
- dent/itooth
- derm/o, dermat/oskin
- -desissurgical fusion, binding
- di-two, double
- dia-through, apart
- duoden/oduodenum
- -dyniapain
- dys-bad, difficult, painful, abnormal
- -ectasisdilation, expansion
- ecto-outside, outer
- -ectomysurgical removal
- -edemaswelling from excess fluid
- embol/oembolus, a plug carried in the blood
- -emesisvomiting
- -emiablood condition, in the blood
- encephal/obrain
- endo-within, inside
- endocrin/oendocrine glands
- enter/ointestine, usually the small intestine
- epi-on, upon, over
- erythr/ored
- esophag/oesophagus
- esthesi/osensation, feeling
- eu-good, normal, well
- exo-outside, outer
- fet/ofetus
- gangli/oganglion, a cluster of nerve cell bodies
- gastr/ostomach
- -genesisformation, origin
- -genicproducing, causing, or originating in
- gloss/otongue
- gluc/osugar, glucose
- glyc/osugar, glucose
- -grama record, an image
- -graphinstrument that records; a record
- -graphyprocess of recording or imaging
- -gravidapregnant woman
- gynec/owoman, female
- hemi-half
- hem/o, hemat/oblood
- hepat/oliver
- herni/ohernia
- hetero-different, other
- hidr/osweat
- hist/otissue
- homo-same
- hydr/owater
- hyper-above normal, excessive
- hypo-below normal, deficient, under
- hyster/outerus
- -iacondition
- -iasisabnormal condition
- -iatristphysician, specialist in treatment
- -iatrymedical treatment, field of medicine
- -icpertaining to
- ile/oileum
- immun/oimmunity, immune system
- infra-below, under
- inter-between
- intra-within, inside
- -ismcondition, state
- iso-equal
- -istspecialist, one who practices
- -itisinflammation
- jejun/ojejunum
- kal/ipotassium
- kary/onucleus
- kerat/ocornea; hard, horny tissue
- -kinesiamovement, motion
- kinesi/omovement, motion
- lact/omilk
- lapar/oabdomen, abdominal wall
- laryng/olarynx, voice box
- later/oside
- -lepsyseizure, attack
- leuk/owhite
- lingu/otongue
- lip/ofat
- lith/ostone, calculus
- -logistspecialist in the study of
- -logystudy of
- lumb/olower back, loin
- lymphaden/olymph node
- lymph/olymph, lymphatic tissue
- -lysisbreakdown, destruction, separation
- macro-large
- -malaciasoftening
- mamm/obreast
- mast/obreast
- megal/olarge
- -megalyenlargement
- melan/oblack, dark
- mening/omeninges, the membranes around the brain and spinal cord
- men/omenstruation
- meso-middle
- meta-change, after, beyond
- -meterinstrument for measuring
- metr/outerus
- -metryprocess of measuring
- micro-small
- mono-one, single
- morph/oshape, form
- multi-many, more than one
- muscul/omuscle
- myc/ofungus
- myel/ospinal cord; bone marrow
- my/omuscle
- myring/oeardrum
- nas/onose
- nat/obirth
- natr/osodium
- necr/odeath
- neo-new
- nephr/okidney
- neur/onerve
- nulli-none
- ocul/oeye
- odont/otooth
- -oidresembling
- oligo-few, scanty
- -omatumor, swelling
- onc/otumor
- onych/onail
- oophor/oovary
- ophthalm/oeye
- -opiavision
- -opsyviewing, examination
- opt/ovision
- orchi/otestis, testicle
- or/omouth
- -osisabnormal condition
- oste/obone
- -ostomysurgical creation of an opening
- ot/oear
- -otomycutting into, incision
- -ouspertaining to
- ovari/oovary
- ox/ooxygen
- pan-all, entire
- pancreat/opancreas
- para-beside, alongside
- -paresisslight or partial paralysis
- -parous, -parabearing, having given birth
- path/odisease
- -pathydisease
- -peniadeficiency, abnormally low number
- per-through
- peri-around, surrounding
- peritone/operitoneum
- -pexysurgical fixation
- -phagiaeating, swallowing
- phag/oeating, swallowing
- pharyng/opharynx, throat
- -phasiaspeech
- phleb/ovein
- -plasiaformation, development
- -plastysurgical repair, reshaping
- -plegiaparalysis
- pleur/opleura, membrane around the lungs
- -pneabreathing
- pneum/o, pneumon/olung; air
- -poiesisformation, production
- poly-many, much, excessive
- post-after, behind
- pre-before, in front of
- primi-first
- pro-before, in front of
- proct/oanus and rectum
- prostat/oprostate gland
- pseudo-false
- psych/omind
- -ptosisdrooping, sagging, prolapse
- pulmon/olung
- pyel/orenal pelvis
- py/opus
- quadri-four
- rect/orectum
- ren/okidney
- retin/oretina
- retro-behind, backward
- rhin/onose
- -rrhage, -rrhagiaexcessive bleeding or flow
- -rrhaphysuturing
- -rrheaflow, discharge
- -rrhexisrupture
- salping/ofallopian tube
- scler/ohard
- -sclerosishardening
- -scopeinstrument for viewing
- -scopyvisual examination
- somat/obody
- somn/osleep
- -somychromosome bodies (copies of one chromosome)
- -spasmsudden involuntary muscle contraction
- spermat/osperm
- spir/obreathe, breathing
- splen/ospleen
- spondyl/overtebra, spine
- -stasisstopping, standstill, control
- -stenosisnarrowing, constriction
- stomat/omouth
- sub-below, under
- supra-above
- syn-, sym-together, with
- tachy-fast, rapid
- ten/o, tendin/otendon
- test/otestis, testicle
- tetra-four
- therm/oheat
- thorac/ochest, thorax
- thromb/oblood clot
- thym/othymus gland
- thyr/othyroid gland
- -ticpertaining to
- tox/opoison
- trache/otrachea, windpipe
- trans-across, through
- tri-three
- trich/ohair
- -tripsysurgical crushing
- -trophynourishment, development, growth
- tympan/oeardrum, middle ear
- uni-one, single
- ureter/oureter
- urethr/ourethra
- -uriaurine, urination
- urin/ourine, urinary tract
- ur/ourine, urinary tract
- uter/outerus
- vagin/ovagina
- vas/oblood vessel; duct (the vas deferens)
- ven/ovein
- vertebr/overtebra, spine
- vesic/ourinary bladder
- viscer/ointernal organs, viscera
- xanth/oyellow
- xer/odry
Start here
Numbers and amounts
The first lesson. A few minutes, free, and no account needed.
Start PracticingNeed a whole term explained? Try the dictionary