NTRI 7850: Welcome

The words that make up the language of medicine are referred to as the terminology of the medical field, or medical terminology. The majority of medical terms are based on Latin or Greek. Most medical terms can be broken down into one or more word parts. There are four different word parts, and any given medical term may contain one, some, or all.

1. Prefixes are at the beginning of the word and describe location, intensity, or amount. They are not always present.
2. Roots contain the word's essential meaning, the body part or system. Medical terms always consist of at least one root, sometimes several.
3. Suffixes occur at the end of the word and describe the procedure, diagnosis, test, or symptom. They are not always present.
4. Combining Vowels makes a term easier to pronounce. The most commonly used vowel is "o".

Word Parts

Medical terms are built from word parts. Those word parts are prefix, word root, suffix, and combining form vowel. When a word root is combined with a combining form vowel the word part is referred to as a combining form.