Medical Terminology: Complete!
Fourth Edition
Chapter 3
Understanding Prefixes
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Learning Objectives
3.1 Define and spell the prefixes commonly used in medical terminology.
3.2 Identify prefixes in medical terms.
3.3 Use prefixes to build medical terms.
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Getting Started with Prefixes (1 of 5)
• The word root or combining form gives the main meaning of the word.
• The suffix comes after the root or combining form.
• The prefix comes before the root or combining form.
• Not all terms have all of these word parts, and some may have more than one of each
part.
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Getting Started with Prefixes (2 of 5)
• a- without anoxia
• ab- away from abduction
• bi- towe bilayer of lipids
• endo- within endotracheal
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Getting Started with Prefixes (3 of 5)
High
• hyper- = above normal
– Hypernatremia
– Hypercalcemia
– Hypertension
– Hyperglycemia
• hypo- = below normal low
– Hyponatremia
– Hypocalcemia
– Hypotension
– Hypoglycemia
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Getting Started with Prefixes (4 of 5)
• intra- inside intracellular
• post- after postpartum
• pre- before prenatal
• sub- under sudcutaneous
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Getting Started with Prefixes (5 of 5)
• anti-
– anti- = against
– bi/o = life
– -ic = pertaining to
antibiotic
• con- together connect
• contra- against
contradict
• meta- change metacarpal bones
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Prefixes That Indicate Number or Quantity
(1 of 3)
• ambi- both
ambidextrous
• bi-
• di- towice
• dipl- Double
• hemi- half hemicolectomy
• mono-
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Prefixes That Indicate Number or Quantity
(2 of 3)
• multi- many multipara
• nulli- non nulligravida
• pan- total pancytopenia
• poly-
– poly- = many
ﺷﺮﻳﺎن
– arter/o = artery
– -itis = inflammation
polyarteritis
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Prefixes That Indicate Number or Quantity
(3 of 3)
• primi-
first primipara
• quadri- four quadriplegia
• semi- شبه semiconscious
• tetra- four
tetraplegia
tricuspid
• tri- three
• uni- one unilateral action
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Prefixes That Indicate Location or Timing (1
of 5)
• ab-
• ad- near addominal
• ana- again anabolism
• ante- before antebrachial muscles
– pre-
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Prefixes That Indicate Location or Timing (2
of 5)
• dia- through Diagnosis
• dis- apart Disorder
• ec-, ecto- outside ectopic
• endo-
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Figure 3.2
Endogastric procedure using an endoscope to observe the internal stomach lining.
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Prefixes That Indicate Location or Timing (3
of 5)
• ep-, epi- the location of the organelles epigastric
• eso- within esophagus
• ex-, exo- outside exocrine
• extra- outside extracellular
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Prefixes That Indicate Location or Timing (4
of 5)
• infer-
• inter- between intercellular
• intra- between intravenous
• para- abnormal paralysis
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Prefixes That Indicate Location or Timing (5
of 5)
• peri- near pericardium
• post-
• sub-
– hypo-
• super-, supra- above
• sym-, syn- together symphysis
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Figure 3.4
Skin layers. The epidermis is on top of the dermis, and the hypodermis (or
subcutaneous layer) is below the dermis.
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Prefixes That Indicate a Specific Quality
about a Term (1 of 3)
• a-
• an- without anemia
• brady- slowly
bradycardia
• circum- around or surrounding circumoral fluid
• dys- abnormal dyspnea
• eu- normal eupnea
• heter-, hetero- different
heterotopic
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Prefixes That Indicate a Specific Quality
about a Term (2 of 3)
• hyper-
• hypo-
• macro- large macromolecule
• mal- abnormal
• mega-, megalo-
large
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Prefixes That Indicate a Specific Quality
about a Term (3 of 3)
• micro- small
• neo- new neonatologist
• pseudo- false pseudocyst
• tachy-
– tachy- = rapid
– cardi/o = heart
– -ia = condition of
tachycardia
• trans- through transport proteins
• ultra- extreme ultrasound
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Figure 3.5
Ultrasound imaging. In this noninvasive procedure, inaudible sound waves are
bounced through the body, detected by a sensor, and interpreted by a computer to
reveal internal structures, such as a fetus within the uterus.
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