BASIC WORD STRUCTURE

 

WORD ROOT - FOUNDATION OF THE WORD

 

            GASTR/IC

 

 ROOT = STOMACH

 

 

SUFFIX - WORD ENDING

 

            GASTR/ITIS

 

SUFFIX = INFLAMMATION

 

 

PREFIX - WORD BEGINNING

 

            EPI/GASTR/IC

 

 PREFIX = ABOVE

 

COMBINING VOWEL

 

·        USUALLY “O”

 

·LINKS ROOT TO SUFFIX

 

                                    CARDI/O/GRAM

 

·LINKS ROOT TO ROOT

 

                        GASTR/O/ENTER/ITIS

 

 

COMBINING FORM

 

            COMBINATION OF A ROOT WORD PLUS A COMBINING VOWEL

 

                        CARDI/O/GRAM

DEFINING MEDICAL TERMS

 

TAKE THE WORD APART

 

            HYPO/GASTR/IC

 

 

 

DEFINE THE PARTS

 

HYPO = BELOW, DEFICIENT

 

GASTR = STOMACH

 

IC = PERTAINING TO

 

REASSEMBLE THE PARTS INTO A MEANINGFUL DEFINITION

 

DEFINE THE SUFFIX FIRST

 

DEFINE THE WORDS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE TERM

 

 

HYPOGASTRIC = PERTAINING TO BELOW THE STOMACH

 

 

SPECIAL RULES

 

 

DROP THE COMBINING VOWEL BEFORE A SUFFIX BEGINNING WITH A VOWEL

 

 

                        GASTRIC, NOT GASTROIC

 

KEEP  THE COMBINING VOWEL BETWEEN THE ROOTS IN A WORD EVEN IF THE 2^nd ROOT BEGINS WITH A VOWEL

 

 

            GASTR/O/ENTER/IC

 

            NOT GASTR/ENTER/IC