A mucus (noun) mucous (adjective) and occasionally

accommodation: note the two c’s and two m’s mucousy

afferent vs efferent myxedema: mix-id-eema
ascites: sounds like uh-sight-ees
aphagia vs aphasia O
asymmetry and symmetry occur – occurring – occurrence
auscultation: sounds like oss-cull-tashun oophorectomy
ophthalmology: people most often leave the first “h”
B out, and occasionally the “l;” this is not the correct
basilar: not basalar – bay-sill-urh spelling: opthmology
barbiturates: sounds like bar-bit-your-uhts
branchial vs brachial P
palliative
C paroxysmal: pair-ox-is-muhl
callus (noun) and callous (adjective): note the “ous” perfusion vs profusion
makes it an adjective perineal vs peroneal
catheterization: sounds just like it looks persistent: with a two ‘e’s, not persistant
chalazion: sounds like kuh-laz-ee-on petechia (peh-teek-ee-uh) or the plural petechiae (peh-
circumferential: the adverb is “circumferentially” teek-ee-eye)
chlamydia: sounds like kluh-mid-ee-uh, it’s a bacterial plane vs plain
family member pleurisy: not pleuricy or pleuracy; plure-iss-see
cord: gets mixed up with chord, cor (heart) and core polyposis: polly-poe-sis
cor (heart) with core: like in an apple, or the center of prostate vs prostrate
pruritis vs pruritus: even the experts get this one wrong;
D it is pruritus
debridement: sounds like dee-breed-ment or mont pterygium: tuhr-idg-ee-um
dependent vs dependant
diaphragm: with a “g,” not diaphram R
dyspareunia: sounds like diss-pair-ee-oo-knee-uh regime vs regimen
rhythm
E S
enuresis vs anuresis sagittal: not saggital – sadg-it-tuhl
elicit vs illicit scalene: from scalenus not scaline
epididymis: epee-did-ee-muss scarring: two ‘r’s, not scaring
erythematosus: arith-uh-mutt-oss-is seborrheic: sub-ore-ee-ick
exacerbated vs exasperated serotonin: sirro-tone-in
senile: and similar usage, arcus senilis not sinilis
G shotty lymph nodes: with two ‘t’s. not shoddy
gamma: note the two m’s; gamma globulin is two words suppuration: supp-ure-ashun
gas, gases, gassy – gaseous, etc.
T
H tonsil: one ‘l,’not tonsill; but tonsillectomy not
hemoptysis tonsillectomy
hemorrhage thoraxes
humerus: not humorous trachea: trachlear, and combined words with same,
hygiene trache/o
V
I vesicle: and similar words ending in –cle – when in an
ileum vs ilium: one is the gut and the other bone adjective form are vesical –the cle is changed to cal –
inoculate e.g., vesical urinary system or combined = vesicourinary
insufflate: in-sue-flate
M X
malacia: muhl-ace-ee-uh not malasia xerosis: with an ‘x,’ not zerosis – zear-oh-sis