Medical Terminology: Roots and Definitions

Study Notes

melan/o: Refers to the color black, often used in terms relating to pigmentation or melanomas.
myc/o: Indicates fungi; commonly seen in medical terms related to fungal infections.
necr/o: Represents death, utilized in terms like necrosis (death of cells).
onych/o: Relates to nails, appearing in terms such as onychomycosis (nail fungus).
pil/o: Refers to hair, used in conditions like piloerection (hair standing up).
phot/o: Signifies light, often used in terms associated with vision or light therapy.
py/o: Indicates pus, commonly seen in infections and inflammatory conditions.
rhytid/o: Means wrinkle, as in rhytidectomy (facelift surgery).
scler/o: Denotes hardness, used in terms like sclerosis (hardening of tissues).
seb/o: Refers to oil, particularly in terms like seborrhea (excessive oil production).
trich/o: Another term for hair, relevant in conditions like trichorrhexis (brittle hair).
ungu/o: Also pertains to nails, similar to onych/o, emphasizing nail-related conditions.
vesic/o: Refers to the bladder, used in terms indicating urinary conditions.
xer/o: Means dry, often associated with dry skin (xerosis) or other dryness-related conditions.

allo-: Refers to something other or different from the usual; can describe variations or alternatives in medical contexts.
xeno-: Indicates something strange or foreign; often used in terms related to xenotransplantation (transplanting from one species to another).