Common Medical Suffixes

Medical suffixes are words placed after the root word to modify and give a medical meaning to the word. Most medical terms are originated from Greek and Latin, while others are derived from languages such as German, English, and French. Knowing the structure of the medical word is essential to understand the meaning of the word. To understand a word, first look for the meaning of the suffix and then look for the meaning of the prefix and the root word. Knowing the prefix, suffix, and the root word, will help to identify a medical word better. The suffix word is preceded by a hyphen in the below list.

eg: hypercholesterolemia = hyper- or excessive (prefix) + cholesterol or fat (root) + -emia or blood condition (suffix)

Suffix            Meaning                                       Medical Word

-ac, -acal         relating to, pertaining to                  cardiac, hydrophobiac, pharmacomaniacal

-acusis            hearing                                          paracusis

-ad                  toward, in the direction of              dorsad

-aemia             blood condition                              anaemia

-al                   pertaining to                                  abdominal, neural, renal

-algia               pain                                              myalgia, arthralgia, neuralgia

-ar                  relating to, pertaining to                   tonsillar

-ary                pertaining to                                   bilary, pulmonary, axillary

-ase                enzyme                                          lactase, lipase

-asthenia         weakness                                       myasthenia gravis

-ation              process                                         habitation, lubrication

-blast              immature, embryonic                      normoblast

-cele               pouching, hernia                             hydrocele, varicocele, rectocele

-centesis         surgical puncture for aspiration        thoracocentesis, abdominocentesis

-chezia            defecation, excretion                       hematochezia

-cidal, -cide     killing, destroying                           bacteriocidal

-coccus          berry shaped                                  streptococcus, staphylococcus

-cocci             bacteria                                         pneumococci

-crine             to secrete                                       endocrine

-cyte              cell                                                leukocyte, erythrocyte, thrombocyte

-cyesis           pregnancy                                      pregnancy

-desis             binding                                          arthrodesis

-dipsia            condition of thirst                           polydipsia hydroadipsia, oligodipsia

-dynia            pain                                               vulvodynia, pleurodynia

-eal                pertaining to                                   adenohypophyseal, corneal, esophageal, perineal

-ectasia          expansion, dilation                           telangiectasia

-ectasiss        tretching, expansion, dilation             bronchiectasis

-ectomy         resection, excision                           mastectomy, nephrectomy, laryngectomy

-emesis          vomiting                                         hematemesis

-emia             blood condition                               anemia, leukaemia

-er                 one who                                        radiographer

-form             having the form of                          cuneiform

-gen               born in, producing, forming             endogen, heterogenous

-genesis          producing, forming                         carcinogenesis, pathogenesis, angiogenesis

-genic             formative, pertaining to                   cardiogenic shock, carcinogenic, osteogenic

-gnosis            knowledge                                    diagnosis, prognosis

-gram             instrument used to record                angiogram, mammogram

-graph             instrument for rendering                 electrocardiograph, electroencephalograph

-graphy           process of recording                      angiography, electrocardiography

-ia                  condition                                       leukaemia, pneumonia

-iac,- ior, -ial   relating to, pertaining to                   peritoneal, inguinal

-iasis              abnormal condition                         mydriasis, choledocholithiasis

-iatry              field in medicine                             podiatry, psychiatry

-ic, -ical          relating to, pertaining to                  gastric, hepatic, chronic, neurological

-icle               small                                             ovarian follicle

-ics                organized knowledge, treatment       obstetrics

-ion                process                                         excision

-ism               condition, disease                           dwarfism

-ismus            spasm, contraction                         hemiballismus

-ist                 one who specializes in                    pathologist

-ite                 the nature of, resembling                 hermaphrodite

-itis                 inflammation                                 tonsillitis, cystitis

-ium               structure, tissue                             pericardium

-lapse             to slide, fall, sag                             prolapse

-lepsis, -lepsy  attack, seizure                               epilepsy, narcolepsy

-logist             one who studies a certain field        oncologist, pathologist

-logy              academic study or practice             hematology, urology, endocrinology

-lysis              destruction, breakdown                 paralysis, hemolysis

-malacia          softening                                     osteomalacia, chondromalacia

-megaly           enlargement, million                      splenomegaly, acromegaly

-meter             instrument used to measure           sphygmomanometer

-metry            process of measuring                    optometry

-mission          to send                                        transmission

-oid                resemblance to                              sarcoidosis, adenoids

-ole                 little, small                                   arteriole

-oma               tumor, mass, collection                 sarcoma, teratoma, hepatoma

-opsy              to view, process of viewing           biopsy, necropsy

-osis               abnormal condition                        epsychosis, leukocytosis, osteoporosis

-ose                full of, pertaining to                       adipose

-ous                pertaining to                                 oseous

-paresis           slight paralysis                              hemiparesis

-pathy             disease, or disorder                        neuropathy, enteropathy, cardiomyopathy

-penia             deficiency                                     osteopenia, erythropenia, neutropenia,

-pepsia            relating to digestion, digestive tract  dyspepsia

-pexy              fixation                                         nephropexy

-phagia            relating to eating or ingestion          sarcophagia

-phago            eating, swallowing, devouring          phagocyte, dysphagia, polyphagia

-phagy            feeding on                                     anthropophagy

-philia              attraction for                                 hemophilia

-phobia            exaggerated fear, sensitivity            arachnophobia, agoraphobia

-phoriato         carry, to bear, producing                 aerophore, amphoric

-physisto         grow, to produce                           apophysis, adenohypophysis

-plasia             formation, development                  achondroplasia, aplasia

-plasm             made, molded, formed                   cytoplasm

-plasty             surgical repair, reconstruction         rhinoplasty, angioplasty

-plegia             paralysis                                       paraplegia

-plexy             stroke or seizure                            cataplexy

-pnea              breathing                                       orthopnea

-poiesis           production                                     hematopoiesis

-ptosis            falling, drooping,                            sagapoptosis, nephroptosis, blepharoptosis

-ptysis            spitting                                          hemoptysis

-rrhage            burst forth, burst of                       bloody hemorrhage

-rrhagia           rapid flow of blood                         menorrhagia

-rrhaphy          suture, surgical suturing                 herniorrhaphy

-rrhea             flow, discharge                              galactorrhea, diarrhea, dysmenorrhea

-rrhexis           rupture                                         karyorrhexis

-rrhoea            flowing, discharged                       iarrhoea

-rupt                break or bursterupt,                      interrupt

-sclerosis         hardening of the skin                     arterioslerosis, multiple sclerosis

-scope              instrument for viewing                  stethoscope, endoscope, laparoscope

-scopy              process of viewing                       endoscopy, laparoscopy

-sis                  state of                                        prognosis 

-somes             small bodies                                 chromosomes

-spadias            slit, fissure                                  hypospadias, epispadias

-spasm              sudden muscle contraction           pylorospasm, bronchospasm.

-stasis               stop, stand, to control, place         hemostasis, cholestasis, metastasis

-staxis               dripping, trickling                        hemostaxis

-stenosis            abnormal narrowing, tightening     pyloric stenosis, restenosis

-stomy              creation of an opening                  colostomy, tracheostomy

-tension,           pressure                                       hypertension

-therapy            treatment                                     hydrotherapy, chemotherapy, radiotherapy.

-tic                   pertaining to, relating to                 necrotic

-tome               cutting instrument                         osteotome

-tomy               act of cutting, incising, incision      gastrotomy, osteotomy, laparotomy

-tony                 tension                                        atony

-tresia               opening                                       atresia, biliary atresia.

-tripsy               crushingli                                    thotripsy

-trophy              nourishment, development             hypertrophy, atrophy
-type                 classification, picture                    karyotype

-ula, -ule            little, small                                   venule, nodule

-um, -ium          structure                                     pericardium

-version             turning                                        anteversion, retroversion

-y                      condition, process of                   surgery