Medical Word Roots Prefeixes

Front 1

ab-

Back 1

departing from, away from,

Front 2

acou-

Back 2

hearing

Front 3

ac-,acro-

Back 3

extreme or extremity, peak
Ex: acrodermatitis, inflammation of the skin of the extremities

Front 4

ad-

Back 4

to or toward

Front 5

aden-, adeno-

Back 5

gland

Front 6

adren-

Back 6

toward the kidney
ex: adrenal gland- adjacent to the kidney

Front 7

aero-

Back 7

air ex: aerobic respiration

Front 8

af-

Back 8

toward
ex:afferent neurons- which carry impulses to center nervous system

Front 9

agon-

Back 9

contest
ex: agonistic and antangonistic muscles- which oppose each other

Front 10

alb-

Back 10

white
ex: corpus albicans of the ovarys- white scar tissue

Front 11

ailment-

Back 11

nourish
ex: alimentary canal-digestive tract.

Front 12

allel-

Back 12

of one another
ex: alleles alternative expressions of a gene

Front 13

amphi-

Back 13

on both sides, of both kinds
amphibian

Front 14

ana-

Back 14

apart, up again
anaphase of mitosis- when the chromosomes separate

Front 15

anastomos-

Back 15

come together
atreriovenous anastomosis- a connection between an artery and a vein

Front 16

aneurysm-

Back 16

a widening
ex: aortic aneurism- a weal spot the causes enlargement of the blood vessel

Front 17

angi-

Back 17

vessel
ex: angiitis- inflammtion of a lymph or blood vessel

Front 18

angin-

Back 18

choked
ex: angina pectoris- a choked feelingi nthe chest due to dysfunction of the heart.

Front 19

anit-, anti-

Back 19

opposed to, preventing or inhibiting
ex: anticoagulant- a sub that prevents blood coagulation

Front 20

ante-

Back 20

preceding, before
ex: antecubital- in front of the elbow

Front 21

aort-

Back 21

great artery
ex: aorta

Front 22

ap-, api-

Back 22

top, extremeity
ex: apex of the heart

Front 23

append-

Back 23

hange to appendicular skeleton

Front 24

aqua-, aque-

Back 24

water
ex: aqueous solution

Front 25

arbor-

Back 25

tree
ex: arbor vitae of the cerebellum- the treelike pattern of white matter

Front 26

areola-

Back 26

open space- areolar connective tissue- a loos connective tissue

Front 27

arrect-

Back 27

upright
ex: arrector pili muscles of the skin- which make the hairs stand erect

Front 28

arthr,arthro-

Back 28

joint
ex: arthropathy- any joint disease

Front 29

artic-

Back 29

joint
articular surfaces of bones- the points of connection

Front 30

atri-

Back 30

vestibule
ex: atria- upper chambers of the heart

Front 31

auscult-

Back 31

listen
ex: auscultatory- method for measuring bld pressure

Front 32

aut-, auto-

Back 32

selt
ex: autogenous- self generated.

Front 33

ax-,axi-, axo-

Back 33

axis, axle
ex: axial skeleton- acis of vertebral column

Front 34

azyg-

Back 34

unpaired
ex: azygous vein- unpairded vessel

Front 35

baro-

Back 35

pressure
ex: baroreceptors- for monitoring bld pressure

Front 36

basal-

Back 36

base
ex: basal lamina- epithelial basement membrane

Front 37

bi-

Back 37

two
ex: bicuspid- having two cusps

Front 38

bili-

Back 38

bile
ex: bilirubin- a bile pigment

Front 39

blast-

Back 39

bud or germ
ex: blastocyte- undifferentiated embryonic cell

Front 40

brachi-

Back 40

arm
ex: brachial plexus- peripheral nervous system supplies the arm

Front 41

brady-

Back 41

slow
ex: bradycardia-abnormally slow heart rate

Front 42

brev-

Back 42

short
ex: peroneus brevis-a short leg muscle

Front 43

bucco-

Back 43

cheek
ex: buccolabial-pertaining to the cheek and lip

Front 44

calor-

Back 44

heat
ex: calories

Front 45

capill-

Back 45

hair

Front 46

caput-

Back 46

head
ex: decapitate

Front 47

carcin-

Back 47

cancer
ex: carcinogen

Front 48

cardi-

Back 48

heart
ex:cardiotoxic

Front 49

carneo-

Back 49

fleh
ex: trabeculae carneae- rides of muscle in the ventricles of the heart

Front 50

carot-

Back 50

1)Carrot ex: carotene-an orange pigment
2)stupor ex: carotid- arteries in neck

Front 51

cata-

Back 51

down
ex: catabolism-chemical breakdown

Front 52

caud-

Back 52

tail
ex: caudal (directional term)

Front 53

cec-

Back 53

blind
ex: cecum of large intestine- a blind ended pouch

Front 54

cele-

Back 54

abdominal
ex: celiac artery, celiac disease

Front 55

cephal-

Back 55

head
ex: cephalometer- an instrument for measuring the head

Front 56

cerebro-

Back 56

brain
ex: cerebrospinal- pertaining to brain and spinal cord

Front 57

cervic, cervix-

Back 57

neck

Front 58

chiasm-

Back 58

crossing
ex: optic chaisma- where optic nerves cross

Front 59

chole-

Back 59

bile
ex: cholesterol, cholecystokinin- a bile secreting horomone

Front 60

chondr-

Back 60

cartilage
ex: chondrogenic- giving rise to cartilage

Front 61

chrom-

Back 61

colored

Front 62

cili-

Back 62

small hair
ex: ciliated epithelium (our hairy skin)

Front 63

circum-

Back 63

around
ex: circumnuclear- surrounding the nucleus

Front 64

clavic-

Back 64

key
ex: clavice- a "skeleton key"

Front 65

co-, con-

Back 65

together
ex: concentric- together in the center

Front 66

coccy-

Back 66

cuckoo
ex: coccyx- which is beak-shaped

Front 67

cochlea-

Back 67

snail shell
ex: cochlea of the inner ear which is coiled like a snail

Front 68

coel-

Back 68

hollow
ex: coelom- the ventral body cavity

Front 69

commis-

Back 69

united
ex: gray commissure of the spinal cord connects the two columns of gray matter

Front 70

concha-

Back 70

shell
ex: nasal conchae- coiled shelves of bone in the nasal cavity

Front 71

contra-

Back 71

against
ex: contraceptive- again preventing conception

Front 72

corn-, cornu-

Back 72

horn
ex: stratum corneum- outer layer of the skin composed of (horny) cells

Front 73

corona-

Back 73

crown
ex: coronal suture of the skull

Front 74

corp-

Back 74

body
ex: corpse, corpus luteum- hormone-secreting body in the ovary

Front 75

cort-

Back 75

bark
ex: cortex- the outer layer of the brain kidney adrenal glands and lymphnodes

Front 76

cost-

Back 76

rib
ex: intercostal- between the ribs

Front 77

crani-

Back 77

skull
ex: craniotomy- a skull operation

Front 78

crypt-

Back 78

hidden
ex: cryptomenorrhea- condition in which menstrual symptoms are experienced but no external loss of blood occurs

Front 79

cusp-

Back 79

pointed
ex: bicuspid, tricuspid- valves of the heart.

Front 80

cutic-

Back 80

skin
ex: cuticle of the nail

Front 81

cyan-

Back 81

blue
ex: cyanosis- lack of oxygen causes skin to turn blue

Front 82

cyst-

Back 82

sac, bladder,
ex: cystitis- inflam of the urinary bladder

Front 83

cyt-

Back 83

cell
ex: cytology- study of cells

Front 84

de-

Back 84

undoing, reversal, loss, removal
ex: deactivation

Front 85

decid-

Back 85

falling off
ex: deciduous (milk) teeth

Front 86

delta-

Back 86

triangular-
ex: deltoid muscle- triangular in shape

Front 87

den-, dent-

Back 87

tooth
ex: dentin of the tooth

Front 88

dendr-

Back 88

tree branch
ex: dendrites, telodendria both branches of a neuron

Front 89

derm-

Back 89

skin
ex: dermatitis

Front 90

desm-

Back 90

bond
ex: desmosome, which binds adjacent epithelial cells

Front 91

dia-

Back 91

through, between
ex:diaphragm- the wall through or between 2 areas

Front 92

dialys-

Back 92

separate, break apart
ex: kidney dialysis- in which waste products are removed from the bld.

Front 93

diastol-

Back 93

stand apart
ex: cardiac diastole- between successive contractions of the heart.

Front 94

diure-

Back 94

urinate
Ex: diuretic- a drug that increases urine output

Front 95

dors-

Back 95

the back
ex: dorsal

Front 96

due- duct-

Back 96

lead draw
ex: ductus deferens- which carries sperm from the epididymis into the urethra during ejaculation

Front 97

dura-

Back 97

hard
ex: dura mater- tough outer meninx

Front 98

dys-

Back 98

difficult, faulty, painful
ex: dyspesia- disturbed digestion

Front 99

ec,ex ecto-

Back 99

out outside and away from
ex: excrete

Front 100

ectop-

Back 100

displaced
ex: ectopic pregnancy-

Front 101

edem-

Back 101

swelling
ex: edema- accumulation of water in body tissues.

Front 102

ef-

Back 102

away
ex: efferent nerve fibers- carries impules away from central nervous system

Front 103

ejac-

Back 103

to shoot from
ex: ejaculate

Front 104

embol-

Back 104

wedge
ex: embolous- an obstructive obj traveling in the bld stream

Front 105

en-, em-

Back 105

in, inside
ex: encysted- inside a cyst

Front 106

enceph-

Back 106

brain
ex: encephalitis- inflammation of the brain

Front 107

endo-

Back 107

w/in inner
ex: endocytosis- taking particles into a cell

Front 108

entero-

Back 108

intestine
ex: enterologist- specializes in intestinal disorders

Front 109

epi-

Back 109

over, above
ex: epidermis

Front 110

erthyr-

Back 110

red
ex: erythema- redness of skin erythrocyte0red bld cell

Front 111

eso-

Back 111

w/in
ex: esophagus

Front 112

eu-

Back 112

well
ex: euesthesia- a normal state of the sense

Front 113

excrtet-

Back 113

separate
ex:excretory system

Front 114

exo-

Back 114

outside, outer layer
ex:exophthalmos- an abonmal protrusion of the eye from the orbit

Front 115

extra-

Back 115

outside, beyond
ex: extracellular

Front 116

extrins-

Back 116

from the outside
ex: extrinsic regulation of the heart

Front 117

fasci-,fascia-

Back 117

bundle, band
ex: superficial and deep fascia

Front 118

fenestr-

Back 118

window
ex: fenestrae- of the inner ear, fenestrated capillaries

Front 119

ferr-

Back 119

iron
ex: transferrin and ferritin (Fe storage proteins)

Front 120

flagell-

Back 120

whip
ex: flagellum-tail of sperm cell

Front 121

flat-

Back 121

blow,blown
ex: flatulence

Front 122

folli-

Back 122

bag, bellows
ex: hair folicle

Front 123

fontan-

Back 123

fountain
ex: fontanels- of the fetal skull

Front 124

foram-

Back 124

opening
ex: foramen magnum of the skull

Front 125

foss-

Back 125

ditch
ex: fossa ovalis of the heart, mandibular fossa of the skull

Front 126

gam-,gamet-

Back 126

married, spouse
ex: gametes the sex cells

Front 127

gangli-

Back 127

swelling or knot
ex: doral root ganglia of the spinal nerves

Front 128

gastr-

Back 128

stomach
ex: gastrin- hormone that influences gastric acid secretion

Front 129

gene-

Back 129

begining
ex:origin genetics

Front 130

germin-

Back 130

grow
ex: germinal epithelium of the gonads

Front 131

gero-, geront-

Back 131

oldmoan
ex: gerontology the study of aging

Front 132

gero-, geront-

Back 132

oldmoan
ex: gerontology the study of aging

Front 133

gest-

Back 133

carried
ex: gestation- the period from conception to birth

Front 134

gest-

Back 134

carried
ex: gestation- the period from conception to birth

Front 135

glauc-

Back 135

gray
ex:glaucoma-which cause gradual blindness

Front 136

glauc-

Back 136

gray
ex:glaucoma-which cause gradual blindness