MEDICAL TERMS

The following terms are used to denote direction of movement, position, and anatomical posture.

abduction movement away from the body's midline.

adduction movement toward the body's midline.
afferent conducting toward a structure.
anterior the front surface of the body.
anterior to in front of.
caudad toward the tail.
cephalad toward the head.
circumduction circular movement of a part.
craniad toward the cranium.
deep situated remote from the surface.
distal situated away from the point of origin.
dorsal pertaining to the back surface of the body.
dorsiflexion bending backward.
efferent conducting away from a structure.
elevation raising a body part.
extension stretching, or moving jointed parts into or toward a straight condition.
external situated outside.
flexion bending, or moving jointed parts closer together.
inferior situated below.
internal situated inside.
laterad toward the side of the body.
lateral situated away from the body's midline.
lateral rotation rotating outward away from the body's midline.
left lateral recumbent lying horizontal on the left side.
mediad toward the midline of the body.
medial situated toward the body's midline.
medial rotation rotating inward toward the bodY'1 midline.
palmar concerning the inner surface of the hand.
peripheral away from a central structure.
plantar concerning the sole of the foot.
posterior pertaining to the back surface of the body.
posterior to situated behind.
pronation lying face downward or turning the hand so the palm faces downward or backward.
prone lying horizontal, face down and flat.
protraction a pushing forward, as the mandible.
proximal situated nearest the point of origin.
recumbent lying horizontal, generally speaking.
retraction a drawing back, as the tongue.
right lateral recumbent lying horizontal on the right side.
rotation turning around an axis.
superficial situated near the surface.
superior situated above.
supination lying face upward or turning the hand so the palm faces forward or upward.
supine lying horizontal, flat on the back and face up.
ventral the front surface of the body.

PLANES

A plane is an imaginary flat surface that divides the body into sections.
coronal or frontal plane an imaginary plane that passes through the body from side to side and divides it into
front and back sections.
midsagittal plane an imaginary plane that passes through the body from front to back and divides it into right
and left halves.
sagittal plane an imaginary plane parallel to the median plane. It passes through the body from front to back
and divides the body into right and left sections.
 transverse plane an imaginary plane that passes through the body and divides it into upper and lower
sections.

WORD PARTS

Prefixes are generally identified by a following dash (AMBI-). Combining forms have a slash and a vowel
following the word root (ARTHR/O). Suffixes are generally identified by a preceding dash (-EMIA).

a- (not, without, lacking, deficient) afebrile, without fever.

ab- (away from) abduct, to draw away from the midline.
-able, -ible (capable of) reducible, capable of being reduced (as a fracture).
abdomin/o (abdomen) abdominal, pertaining to the abdomen.
ac- (to) acclimate, to become accustomed to.
acou (hear) acoustic, pertaining to sound or hearing.
acr/o (extremity, top, peak) acrodermatitis, inflammation of the skin of the extremities.
acu (needle) acupuncture, the Chinese practice of piercing specific peripheral nerves with needles to relieve
the discomfort associated with painful disorders.
ad- (to, toward) adduct, to draw toward the midline.
aden/o (gland) adenitis, inflammation of a gland.
adip/o (fat) adipose, fatty; fat (in size).
aer/o (air) aerobic, requiring the presence of oxygen to live and grow.
af- (to) afferent, conveying toward.
ag- (to) aggregate, to crowd or cluster together.
-algesia (painful) hyperalgesia, overly sensitive to pain.
-algia (painful condition) neuralgia, pain that extends along the course of one or more nerves.
ambi- (both sides) ambidextrous, able to perform manual skills with both hands.
ambl/y (dim, dull, lazy) amblyopia, lazy eye.
amphi-, ampho- (on both sides, around both) amphigonadism, having both testicular and ovarian tis- sues.
amyl/o (starch) amyloid, starchlike.
an- (without) anemia, a reduced volume of blood cells.
ana- (upward, again, backward, excess)anaphylaxis, an unusual or exaggerated reaction of an organism to a
substance to which it becomes sensitized.
andr/o (man, male) android, resembling a man.
angi/o (blood vessel. duct) angioplasiy, surgery of blood vessels.
ankyl/o (stiff) ankylosis, stiffness.
ant-, anti- (against, opposed to, preventing, relieving) antidote, a substance for counteracting a poison.
ante- (before, forward) antecubital, situated in front of the elbow.
antero- (front) anterolateral, situated in front and to one side.
ap- (to) approximate, to bring together; to place close to.
apo- (separation, derivation from) apoplexy, sudden neurologic impairment due to a cardiovascular
disorder.
-arium, -orium (place for something) solarium, a place for the sun.
arteri/o (artery) arteriosclerosis, thickening of the walls of the smaller arteries.
arthrio (joint, articulation) arthritis, inflammation of a joint or joints.
articul/o (joint) articulated, united by joints.
as- (to) assimilate, to take into.
at- (to) attract, to draw toward.
audi/o (hearing) audiometer, an instrument to test the power of hearing.
aur/o (ear) auricle, the flap of the ear.
aut/o (self) autistic, self-centered
bi- (two, twice, double, both) bilateral, having two sides; pertaining to two sides.
bi/o (life) biology, the study of life.
blephario (eyelid) blepharitis, inflammation of the eyelid.
brachi/o (upper arm) brachialgia, pain in the upper arm.
brady- (slow) bradycardia, an abnormally slow heart rate.
bronch/o (larger air passages of the lungs) bronchitis, inflammation of the larger air passages of the lungs.
bucc/o (cheek) buccal, pertaining to the cheek.
cac/o (bad) cacosmis, a bad odor.
calc/o (bad) calculus, an abnormal hard inorganic mass such as a gallstone.
calcane/o (heel) calcaneus, the heel bone.
calor /o (heat) caloric, pertaining to heat.
cancr/o (cancer) cancroid, resembling cancer.
capit/o (head) capitates, head-shaped.
caps/o (container) capsulation, enclosed in a capsule or container.
carcin/o (cancer) carcinogen, a substance that causes cancer.
cardi/o (heart) cardiogenic, originating in the heart.
carp/o (wrist bone) carpal, pertaining to the wrist bone.
cat-, cata- (down, lower, under, against, along with) catabasis, the stage of decline of a disease.
-cele (tumor, hernia) hydrocele, a confined collection of water.
celi/o (abdomen) celiomyalgia, a pain in the muscles of the abdomen.
-centesis (perforation or tapping. as with a needle) abdominocentesis, surgical puncture of the abdominal
cavity.
cephal/o (head) electroencephalogram, a recording of the electrical activity of the brain.
cerebr/o (cerebrum) cerebrospinal, pertaining to the brain and spinal fluid.
cervic /o (neck, cervix) cervical, pertaining to the neck (or cervix).
cheil/o, chil/o (lip) cheilitis, inflammation of the lips.
cheirio, chir/o (hand) cheiralgia, pain in the hand.
chlor/o (green) chloroma, green cancer. a greenish tumor associated with myelogenous leukemia.
chol/e (bile, gall) choledochitis, inflammation of the common bile duct.
chondr/o (cartilage) chondrodynia, pain in a cartilage.
chrom/o, chromat/o (color) monochromatic, being of one color.
chron/o (time) chronic, persisting for a long time.
-cid- (cut, kill, fall) insecticide, an agent that kills insects.
circum- (around) circumscribed, confined to a limited space.
-cis- (cut, kill, fall) excise, to cut out.
-clysis (irrigation) enteroclysis, irrigation of the small intestine.
co- (with) cohesion, the force that causes various particles to unite.
col- (with) collateral, secondary or accessory; a small side branch such as a blood vessel or nerve.
col/o (colon, large intestine) colitis, inflammation of the colon.
colp/o (vagina) colporrhagia, bleeding from the vagma.
com- (with) comminuted, broken or crushed into small pieces.
con- (with) congenital, existing from the time of birth.
contra- (against, opposite) contraindicated, inadvisable.
cor/e, core/o (pupil) corectopia, abnormal location of the pupil of the eye.
cost/o (rib) intercostal, between the ribs.
crani/o (skull) cranial, pertaining to the skull.
cry/o (eold) cryogenic, that which produces low temperature.
crypt/o (hide, cover, conceal) cryptogenic, of doubtful origin.
cyan/o (blue) cyanosis, bluish discoloration of the skin and mucous membranes.
cyst/o (urinary bladder, cyst, sac of fluid) cystitis, inflammation of the bladder.
-cyte (cell) leukocyte, white cell.