Deciphering Medical Terms - For Laymen

A lot of medical terms sound complicated to us because they have their origin in Latin, but when you understand how they are formed, it gets relatively easier. If you divide the medical term in terms of (Prefix + Root + Suffix) everything feels much simpler, even for us common folks.

The prefix and suffix usually describes what is happening and a brief cue of where (direction) it is happening whereas the root tells which organ is affected. Go through the prefix, suffix and root list and you will never have trouble understanding the terms your doctor uses or while watching a season of House MD

The Prefix​

Prefix	Meaning
Ab-	Moving away
Ad-	Drawing towards
Anterior-	Front
Anti	Opposing or against
Bi-	Double, two, twice, both
Brady-	Slow
Caudo	Downward
Cephalo	Upward
Co-, con-, com-	With, together
De-	From, down
Di-	Twice, two
Distal	Away
Dys-	Unwell, difficult
Endo-	Inside, within
Exo-	Outside
Extra, Extro	Outside of, Beyond, outward
Hemi	Half of
Hyper-	Above, excessive, beyond
Hyp-, hypo-	Below, beneath, deficient
Infra-	Below or beneath
Inter	Between
Intra	within, inside
Intro	into
Macro	Large
Micro, Micr	Small
Necro-	Death
Post	After, following
Pre, Pro	Before, preceding, in front of
Posterior-	Back
Proximal	Near
Retro	Behind, backward
Semi	Half
Tachy-	Fast
Trans	Though, across
Tri	3
Ultra	Excess

The Suffix​

Suffix	Meaning
-ac,-ic,-al,-ous,-tic	Related to
-ate, -ize	Subject to
-genic	Produced by
-gram	A written record
-graph	Instrument used to record
-graphy	Process of recording
-ism	Condition
-tis	Inflammation
-oma	Tumor
-pathy	Disease
-phobia	Fear, intolerance
-scope	Instrument used to examine
-scopy	Process of examining

The Exterior Root​

Exterior Root	Meaning
Blephar	Eyelid
Carp/o	Wrist
Cephal/o	Head
Cervic	Cervix or neck
Crani	Skull
Cubit	Elbow
Dactyl	Fingers, toes
Derm/a	Skin
Gingiv	Gums in the mouth
Gloss/o	Tongue
Gnath/o	Jows
Inguin/o	Groin
Irid/o	Iris of the eye
Labi/o	Lips
Lapar/o	Abdomen
Mamm/a, mamm/o	Breast
Occul/o	Eye
Odont/o	Teeth
Opthalm/0	Eyes
Ot/o	Ear
Papill/o	Nipple
Pelv/i	Pelvis
Phall/o	Penis
Pod/o	Foot
Rhin/o	Nose
Steth/o	Chest
Stomat/o	Mouth
Tal/o	Ankle
Tars/o	Foot
Thorac/o	Chest/thorax
Trich	Hair

The Interior Root​

Interior Root	Meaning	Example
Abdomin/o	Abdomen	Abdominoplasty: Surgical reconstruction of abdomen
Angi/o	Vessel	Angioplasty: Surgical reconstruction of a vessel
Arteri/o	Artery	Arterioplasty: Surgical reconstruction of an artery
Arthr/o	Joint	Arthritis: Inflammation of a joint
Audi/o	Hearing	Audiometry: Heasring measurement using an audiometer
Bronch/i, bronch/o	Bronchus/lung	Bronchitis: Inflammation of bronchi
Cardi/o	Heart	Cardiomegaly: Enlargement of heart
Cholecyst/o	Gallbladder	Cholecystectomy: Removal of gallbladder
Chondr/i, chondr/o	Cartilage	Chondromalacia: Softening of cartilage
Col/o	Colon	Colonoscopy: Examination of colon
Cry/o	Cold	Cryotherapy: Using cold temperature to treat
Cysti, cyst/o	Bladder, or cyst	Cystitis: Inflammation of bladder
Cyt/o	Cell	Cytology: Study of cells
Duoden/o	Duodenum	Duodenotomy: Surgical cutting into the duodenum
Encephal/o	Brain	Encephalitis: Inflammation of brain
Episi/o	Vulva	Episiotomy: Surgical cutting of vulva
Erythr/o	Red	Erythrocytes: Red blood cells
Esophag/o	Esophagus	Esophagitis: Inflammation of esophagus
Galact/o	Milk	Galactorrhea: Spontaneous flow of milk when nursing
Gastr/o	Stomach	Gastritis: Inflammation of stomach
Glyc/o	Sugar	Glycosuria: Sugar in the urine
Gynec/o	Female	Gynecologist: Physician who studies and treats diseases of female reproductive organs
Hemat/o, hem/o	Blood	Hematocyte: Blood cell
Hepat/o	Liver	Hepatitis: Inflammation of liver
Heter/o	Other, different	Heterosexual: Sexually attracted to the opposite sex
Hist/o, histi/o	Tissue	Histology: Study and function of tissue
Hom/o, home/o	Same, alike	Homosexual: Sexually attracted to the same sex
Hydr/o	Water, wet	Hydromassage: Massage by means of moving water
Hyster/o	Uterus	Hysterectomy: Surgical removal of uterus
Ile/o	Ileum (intestine)	Ileostomy: Artificial opening into the ileum
Ili/o	Ilium (pelvic bone)	Ilioinguinal: Pertaining to the ilium and inguinal regions
Jejun/o	Jejunum	Jejunitis: Inflammation of jejunum
Lacrima	Tears	Lacrimatory: Causing a flow of tears
Laryng/o	Larynx	Laryngitis: Inflammation of larynx
Leuk/o	White	Leukocyte: White blood cell
Lith/o	Stone or calculus	Lithotripsy: Crushing of a stone or calculus
Men/o	Menstruation	Menorrhea: Menstrual flow
Myel/o	Bone marrow/spinal cord	Myelogram: Recording of spinal cord
My/o	Muscle	Myositis: Inflammation of a muscle
Nat/o	Birth	Prenatal: Before birth
Necr/o	Death	Necrosis: Death of a cell
Nephr/o	Kidney	Nephrectomy: Surgical removal of a kidney
Neur/o, neur/i	Nerve	Neurologist: Physician who studies and treats conditions of nervous system
Oophor/o	Ovary	Oophorectomy: Surgical removal of an ovary
Orchid/o, orchi/o	Testis	Orchialgia: Testicular pain
Peritone/o	Peritoneum	Peritoneal: Pertaining to the peritoneum
Pharyng/o	Pharynx	Pharyngitis: Inflammation of pharynx (sore throat)
Pleur/o, pleur/a	Pleura, rib (side)	Pleurisy: Inflammation of lining of chest cavity
Pneum/o/a	Lungs	Pneumonitis: Inflammation of lung
Proct/o	Rectum, anus	Proctologist: Physician who studies and treats diseases of rectum and anus
Pulmon/o	Lungs	Pulmonary: Pertaining to the lungs
Pyel/o	Renal pelvis	Pyelolithotomy: Removal of a stone from the pelvis or kidney
Rect/o	Rectum	Rectosigmoid: Pertaining to the rectum and sigmoid
Salping/o	Fallopian tube	Salpingectomy: Surgical removal of a fallopian tube
Sarc/o	Flesh	Sarcoid: Resembling flesh
Splen/o	Spleen	Splenectomy: Surgical removal of spleen
Tend/o	Tendon	Tendinitis (or tendonitis): Inflammation of a tendon
Testicul/o	Testis	Testicular: Pertaining to a testis or testicle
Thorac/o	Chest	Thoracotomy: Incision into the chest cavity
Tonsill/o	Tonsils	Tonsillitis: Inflammation of tonsils
Ureter/o	Ureter	Ureterolithotomy: Removal of a calculus (stone) from a ureter by means of incision
Urethr/o	Urethra	Urethritis: Inflammation of urethra
Vas/o	Vas deferens	Vasectomy: Surgical removal of portion of vas deferens for male sterilization
Viscer/o	Viscera (organs)	Viscerography: Radiography of viscera