Biology Roots Flashcards

Root Word Meanings

• "ab-" or "abs-": Means "away from"; example: abscission refers to the separation of leaves from a tree.
• "a-" or "an-": Denotes "not" or "absent"; example: abiotic signifies without life, and anoxygenic means without oxygen.
• "allo-": Refers to "another"; example: allosteric indicates another binding site.
• "aqua-": Represents "water"; example: aqueous means watery.
• "bi-": Signifies "two"; example: bilayer refers to a double-layered structure.
• "bio-": Means "life"; example: biology is the study of life.
• "-cide": Denotes "kill"; example: bacteriocidal denotes the ability to kill bacteria.
• "cyt-": Refers to "cell"; example: cytoplasm is the fluid inside a cell.
• "di-": Also signifies "two"; example: disaccharide refers to a carbohydrate made of two simple sugars.
• "dis-": Means "apart"; example: disjoin refers to the act of separating.
• "endo-": Signifies "inside"; example: endocytosis is a process that brings substances into a cell.
• "epi-": Refers to "upon" or "over"; example: epidermis is the uppermost layer of tissue covering an organism.
• "eu-": Means "true"; example: eukaryotes are organisms with a true nucleus.
• "ex-": Denotes "out"; example: exocytosis signifies a process that expels substances from cells.
• "geno-": Refers to "give birth"; example: genetics is the study of heredity.
• "hetero-": Means "mixed" or "unlike"; example: heterozygous denotes a cell with two different gene versions.
• "homo-": Signifies "same"; example: homozygous refers to a cell with two identical gene versions.
• "hyper-": Means "above"; example: hypertonic relates to having a greater concentration of solutes.
• "hypo-": Denotes "below"; example: hypotonic refers to a solution with lower concentration of solutes.
• "inter-": Represents "between"; example: interphase is the cellular phase between cell divisions.
• "iso-": Means "same"; example: isotonic refers to a solution with the same concentration of solutes.
• "locus": Refers to "place"; example: a locus on a chromosome is the specific location of a gene.
• "macro-": Denotes "big"; example: macrophage is a large phagocytic cell.
• "-meter": Signifies "measure"; example: centimeter is a measurement that is 1/100 of a meter.
• "micro-": Means "small"; example: microbiology is the study of organisms too small to be seen with the naked eye.
• "mono-": Denotes "one"; example: monosaccharide refers to a single sugar molecule.
• "olig-": Signifies "few"; example: oligosaccharide refers to a short chain of sugars.
• "ped-" or "pod-": Means "foot"; example: pseudopod refers to a "false foot" or projection of an amoeba.
• "phago-": Denotes "eat"; example: phagocytosis is the process where white blood cells engulf bacteria and viruses.
• "-phil": Refers to "loving" or "attraction"; example: hydrophilic means mixing well with water.