Medical Terminology: Prefixes and Suffixes

• Suffixes and prefixes modify the meaning of base words in medical terminology.

Suffixes and Their Meanings

• "-sis" generally indicates a condition, state, or process, as in "diagnosis," which is identifying a disease or condition.
• "-ist" refers to a specialist or someone who practices a particular field or profession, for example, a "pediatrician" specializes in the care of children.
• "-ic" means pertaining to or related to, such as "cardiac," pertaining to the heart.
• "-ing" typically forms a present participle or gerund, which indicates an ongoing process, action, or state, like "bleeding," the process of blood loss.
• "-ful" generally means "full of" or "characterized by," for example, "painful" means full of pain.
• "-fy" signifies "to make," such as "purify," meaning to make something pure, often by removing contaminants.
• "-ment" denotes the result of an action or a state, condition, or process, as in "treatment," the application of therapy to manage a condition.
• "-ity" refers to a state, condition, or quality of being something, like "immunity," the state of being resistant to a disease or infection.
• "-ism" typically means a condition or state, such as "hypothyroidism," a condition in which the thyroid gland is underactive.
• "-al" means "pertaining to" or relating to, such as "abdominal," pertaining to the abdomen.
• "-ion" typically means the act of, process of, or result of an action, like "incision," the act or process of cutting into tissue.
• "-ian" typically means a specialist in or one who practices, such as "physician," a medical doctor who practices medicine.
• "-logy" means the study of or the science of, like "biology," the study of living organisms and their processes.
• "-er" indicates a person or thing that performs an action or one who practices or specializes in something, for example, a "surgeon" is a medical professional who performs surgery.
• "-ate" indicates "to cause" or "to make," such as "hypertimate," to cause or induce hypertension (high blood pressure).
• "-ance" generally means "the state or quality of" or "the process of," for example, "resistance" is the body’s ability to withstand or fight off diseases, infections, or antibiotics.
• "-ness" generally means "the quality of" or "the state or condition," such as "illness," the state of being unwell or sick.
• "-ize" means "to make," for example, "sterilize" means to make something free from bacteria or other microorganisms.

Prefixes and Their Meanings

• "Anti-" means against or preventing, like an "antibiotic," a substance used to kill the growth of bacteria.
• "Bio-" refers to life or living organisms, for example, a "biopsy" involves removing and examining tissue from a living body to diagnose disease.
• "Dis-" means separate or apart, such as to "disinfect," which is to cleanse an area or object by removing harmful microorganisms.
• "Im-" means not, opposite of (used before certain letters like "b," "m," and "p"), like "immune," which means protected from disease or infection.
• "In-" means not, for example, "incomplete" means not finished or lacking some part.
• "Ir-" means not, opposite of (used before words starting with "r"), for example, "irregular" means not normal or not following a predictable pattern.
• "Mal-" means bad or abnormal, for example, "malfunction" means failure to operate properly or as expected.
• "Micro-" means small or tiny, such as a "microscope," an instrument used to view very small objects.
• "Out-" means outside, like an "outpatient," a patient who receives treatment without being admitted to the hospital.
• "Pre-" means before or prior to, such as "prenatal," occurring or existing before birth.
• "Trans-" means across, beyond, or through, for example, a "transfusion" is the process of transferring blood or blood products into a patient's circulatory system.
• Ultra- means beyond, extreme. For example - Ultrasound means a diagnostic imaging technique that uses high-frequency sound waves to create images of the inside of the body.
• "Un-" means not, opposite of, such as "unhealthy," which is not conducive to good health or well-being.

Explore medical prefixes and suffixes. Learn how these word parts alter base word meanings in healthcare. Understand common suffixes and their definitions.