HUMAN ANATOMY AND

MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY

NUMBERS
PREFIX

MEANING

EXAMPLE

Mono-, uni-

One

Unilateral

Bi-

Two

Bilateral

Tri-

Three

Triplicate

Quadr-

Four

Quadriceps

hex-, sex-

Six

hexose

Diplo

Double

diplococcus

DIRECTIONS AND POSITIONS

PREFIX

MEANING

EXAMPLE

Ab-

Away from

Abduction

Ad-

Toward

Adduction

Ecto-, exo-

Outside

Ectoparasite

Endo-

Inside

Endoderm

Epi-

Upon

Epinephrine

Infra-

Below, under

Infrared

Ipsi-

Same

Ipsilateral

Meso-

Middle

Mesomorph

Meta-

After, beyond, transform

metastasize

Peri-

Surrounding

Periodontal

Retro-

Behind, back

Retrograde amnesia

Sub-

Below

Submandibular

Trans-

Across, through

Transcutaneous

POSITIONAL AND DIRECTIONAL

MEDICAL TERMS
WORD

MEANING

EXAMPLE

Anterior or ventral

Anterior nerves

Superior

At or near the front surface of the

body
At or near the real surface of the
body
Above

Inferior

Below

Inferior aspect

Lateral

Side

Lateral aspect

Distal

Farthest from center

Axons distal to the injury

Proximal

Nearest to center

Proximal end of the forearm

Medial

Middle

Medial axis

Supine

Face up or palm up

Laying supine

Posterior or dorsal

Dorsal surface of the hand

Superior (cranial) aspect

POSITIONAL AND DIRECTIONAL

MEDICAL TERMS, CONT.
WORD

MEANING

EXAMPLE

Prone

Face or palm down

Laying prone

Sagittal

Vertical body plane, divides the

body into left and right

Sagittal suture

Transverse

Horizontal body plane that divides

the body into top and bottom

transverse myelitis

Coronal

Vertical body plane that divides the

body into front and back

Coronal suture

BASIC ANATOMY TERMS

WORD

BODY PART

Abdominal

abdomen

Acromial

Point of shoulder

Antebrachial

Forearm

Antecubital

Front of elbow

Axillary

Armpit

Brachial

Arm

Buccal

Cheek

Calcaneal

Heel of foot

BASIC ANATOMY TERMS, CONT.

WORD

MEANING

Carpal

Wrist

Caudal

Tail

Cephalic

Head

Cervical

Neck

Clavicular

Collar bone

Costal

Rib

Coxal

Hip

Cranial

Skull

BASIC ANATOMY TERMS, CONT.

WORD

MEANING

Crural

Leg

Cubital

Elbow

Deltoid

Curve of shoulder

Digital

Fingers and toes

Dorsal

Upper back

Femoral

Thigh

Fibular

Outer side of the lower leg between the knee and

ankle
Forehead

Frontal

BASIC ANATOMY TERMS, CONT.

WORD

MEANING

Genital

Pertaining to the reproductive organs

Gluteal

Buttock

Hallux

Great toe

Inguinal

Groin

Lumbar
Mammary

Loin (lowest part of the spine below the false ribs and
between the hips)
Breast

Manual

Hand

Mental

Chin

Nasal

Nose

BASIC ANATOMY TERMS, CONT.

WORD

MEANING

Nuchal

Back of neck

Occipital

Back of head

Olecranal

Point of Elbow

Oral

Mouth

Orbital

Eye

Otic

Ear

Palmar

Palm

Patellar

Kneecap

BASIC ANATOMY TERMS, CONT.

WORD

MEANING

Pectoral

Chest

Pedal

Foot

Pelvic

Pelvis

Perineal

Between the groin and the anus

Peroneal

Outer side of the calf

Plantar

Sole of foot

Pollex

Thumb

Popliteal

Back of knee

BASIC ANATOMY TERMS, CONT.

WORD

MEANING

Pubic

Groin

Sacral

Between the hips

Scapular

Shoulder bone

Sternal

Breastbone

Sural

Calf

Tarsal

Ankle

Thoracic

Chest

Umbilical

Navel

Ventral

Belly

Vertebral

Spinal Column

CONDITIONS
PREFIX

MEANING

EXAMPLE

Ambi-

Both

Ambidextrous

Aniso-

Unequal

Anisocytosis

Dys-

Bad, painful, difficult

Dyslexia

Eu-

Good, normal

Eukaryote

Hetero-

Different

Heterogeneous

Homo-

Same

Homogeneous

Hyper-

Excessive, above

Hypertension

Hypo-

Lack, below

Hypoglycemic

Iso-

Equal, same

Isotope

Mal-

Bad, poor

Malnutrition

Megalo-

Large

Megalomania

CONDITIONS, CONT.
SUFFIX

MEANING

EXAMPLE

-algia

Pain

Myalgia

-asthenia

Neurocirculatory asthenia

-emia

Weakness (may also be a

standalone term)
Blood

-iasis

Condition of

Elephantiasis

-itis

Inflammation

Bronchitis

-lysis

Destruction, break down

Dialysis

-lytic

Destroy, break down

Hydrolytic

-oid

Like

Haploid

-oma

Tumor

Fibroma

Hypoglycemia

CONDITIONS, CONT.
SUFFIX

MEANING

EXAMPLE

-opathy

Disease of

Neuropathy

-orrhagia

Hemorrhage

Metrorrhagia

-orrhea

Flow or discharge

Diarrhea

-osis

Abnormal condition of

Tuberculosis

-paresis

Slight paralysis

Hemiparesis

-plasia

Growth

Achondroplasia

-plegia

Paralysis

Quadraplegia

-pnea

Breathing

Sleep apnea

SURGICAL PROCEDURES
SUFFIX

MEANING

EXAMPLE

-centesis

Puncture a cavity to remove fluid

Amniocentesis

-ectomy

Surgical removal or excision

Hysterectomy

-ostomy

A new permanent opening

Tracheostomy

-otomy

Cutting into, incision

Gastrotomy

-orrhaphy

Surgical repair or suture

Gastrorrhaphy

-opexy

Surgical fixation

Nephropexy

-oplasty

Surgical repair

Rhinoplasty

-otripsy

Crushing or destroying

Lithotripsy