Medical Terminology / Lecture )1(
CHAPTER 1
The Elements of a Medical Vocabulary
KEY TERMS
Adjective a word used with a noun to modify its meaning
Analyze to separate into elements or parts
Consonant a letter of the alphabet other than a, e, I, o, u
Diphthong a blend of two vowel sounds in one syllable
Interpret to explain or tell the meaning of
Noun a word that is the name of something, such as a person, place,
thing, or idea
Plural the form of a word denoting more than one
Pronounce to say words or syllables aloud
Syllable several letters taken together to form one sound
Vocabulary a list or collection of words
Vowel one of the letters a, e, I, o, u. the letter y sometimes serves as a
vowel.
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INTROBUCTION
This text has two main purposes:
1. To help you build a medical vocabulary easily and quickly, and
2. To assist you in interpreting medical terms as they are used in medical
practice.
In this first chapter, we will talk about the way that medical terms are built. We
will analyze the terms, and you will have practice exercises to help you remember.
In later chapters you will learn how to interpret medical terminology as it is used
by physicians and other health professionals.
COMMONLY USED TERMS
You may not realize that many medical terms are already a part of your
vocabulary. You`ve seen them in printـــin advertisements, for instance; you`ve
heard them in television programs; and you`ve used them in conversation. Let`s
analyze a few medical terms that you are likely to have heard. Like the new
medical terms you`ll be learning later on, they are formed from combinations of
parts.
Abnormal ab-is a word beginning, or prefix, often used in medical terms.
It Means away from.
Anemia an-is prefix meaning not or without. –emia is a word ending, or
suffix, meaning blood condition.
Appendectomy -ectomy is a suffix used in surgical terms; it means taking out
(excision) or removing; append-refers to the appendix.
Arthritis arthr is a word root meaning joint; -it is is a suffix meaning
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inflammation.
Diarrhea dia- is a prefix meaning through; -rhea is a suffix meaning flow.
Hydrophobia hydro-is a root meaning water; -phobia means fear it is the
medical term for rabies, a disease in which the victim fears
water because swallowing it leads to painful spasms.
Hypodermic the prefix hypo- means beneath; the suffix –dermic means
having to do with the skin. A hypodermic syringe (needle)
injects fluid beneath the skin.
Neuralgia neur- is the root for nerve; the word ending-algia means pain in
the body part it follows.
Tracheotomy trache is the medical root for trachea ( the windpipe); -otomy is
A surgical suffix that means a cutting or incision.
These are only a few examples of words that you may already have head and
used. You may feel quite comfortable with them. As you work through this
text, you`ll find the new terms becoming just as comfortable.
LEARNING AND REMEMBERING MEDICAL TERMS
Let`s begin by learning some word parts. Medical terms have three basic elements:
(1) Roots, (2) prefixes, and (3) suffixes (figure 1.1)
• The root is that part of a word that can stand alone and have meaning.
• A prefix is a letter or group of letters placed before the root or roots to
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change (modify) their meaning.
• A suffix is a letter or group of letters placed after the root or roots to change
(modify) their meaning.
Like the plastic blocks that children play with, these basics forms can be linked in
hundreds of different ways to create different meanings. By thinking of them as
building blocks, you can make building a medical vocabulary into a game.
Use it forever. Most medical terms do not change their meanings; sometimes the
logic of the way the word was formed no longer makes sense because of new
discoveries. For example, the term artery comes from the Greek word arteria,
which means windpipe yet we now know that arteries carry blood. Not air, the
ancient Greeks believed that the Arteries carried only air because their physicians
had never found blood in the arteries of a cadaver ( a dead body). Even so, the
word "artery" remains in the medical vocabulary today, as similar terms do.
This is not to say that a medical vocabulary never changes. As advances in
medicine are made, new words are coined. Others are discarded. The new words
are often formed from the very building blocks that you will be mastering these
basics will always be with you to help you build and interpret new terms.
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BUILDING BLOCKS
+ +
prefix Root Suffix
aden + itis
dys + pnea
en + cephal + gram
+
Root Root
+
hydro Phobia
FIGURE 1.1 constructing medical terms using building blocks
Analyzing the structure of words
Now, let`s explore some common building blocks (figure 1.1). in the
lists of examples, you will see the building block, then its meaning, then its use
in the full word, where the building block is shown in italics.
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ROOT: The root of a word can stand alone and have meaning. For example:
root Meaning Example
aden gland Adenitis
cardi heart Cardiology
cephal head Encephalogram
derm Skin Dermatosis
flex bending Anteflexion
gastr Stomach Gastroscopy
hydr Water Hydrophobia
my Muscle Myalgia
neur Nerve Neuritis
pnea Breath Dyspnea
Prefix: Recall that a prefix is a letter or group of letters placed before a
word to Change (modify) its meaning. For example:
Prefix Meaning Example
a- without, not Apnea
Ante- before (in time or place) Ante flexion
Dys- bad, painful, difficult dysfunction
(Note: this is an example in
which y serves as a vowel.)
endo- Within Endocrine
retro- behind, backward Retrograde
Suffix. Recall that a suffix is a letter or group of letters placed after a word to
change ( modify) its meaning. For example:
Suffix Meaning Example
-algia Pain, painful condition Neuralgia
-cele Herniation or bulging Hydrocele
-itis Inflammation Gastritis
-ology Study or science of Cardiology
-pathy Disease Myopathy
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