UNDERSTANDING VETERINARY TERMINOLOGY: WORD ANALYSIS

PneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiOSIS -OSIS, or whatever kind of dust the word specifies,...

****we're basically talking about a "condition of dust in the lungs." --There is a shorter word, pneumoconiosis, meaning "a disease of the lungs caused by the habitual inhalation of irritants (such as mineral or metallic particles)." ***Horses that work in mining operations sometimes suffer pneumoconiosis

PneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoCONIosis *CONI-, from the Greek root konis- meaning "dust." --Just by identifying and defining our roots and affixes, we understand the relationship between them. --But determining this relationship is actually a separate step, the one that assembles the puzzle.

*Coniosis Dustlike calculi (an abnormal stone formed in body tissues) in gallbladder and bile ducts --Just by identifying and defining our roots and affixes, we understand the relationship between them. --But determining this relationship is actually a separate step, the one that assembles the puzzle. ****once we know that CONI- means "dust," we've found the ultramicroscopicsilicovolcano-ish thing that's causing our lung condition. --Had we known that CONI- means "dust" at the outset, we could scan the word, put together PNEU-, MON-, CONI-,

PneumonoultraMICROscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis *MICRO-, Means "small,"

*Micro tiny (Microprocessor, Microwave)

PNEUMONOultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis *PNEUMONO-, which means "lung."

*Pneu means lung, air, breathing (Pneumonia, Pneumatic) *Mono one, single, alone (Monochrome, Monotony) --A body part. Body parts are almost always roots, and this root tells us our word defines a condition b/c (-OSIS) of the lungs (PNEUMONO-). --Some dictionaries will list it under PNEUM- or PNEUMO-, one of those exceptions we promised to tell you about. --But what kind of lung condition?

PneumonoultramicroSCOPicsilicovolcanoconiosis *SCOPE, is "an instrument for viewing." PneumonoultramicroscopICsilicovolcanoconiosis *-IC, Means "having the character or nature of,"

*Scopic Visual examination (Microscopic, Telescopic) --SCOPE is also an example of a root that isn't a body part --We know it's a root because it has a prefix and a suffix modifying it. --MICROSCOPIC is being modified by ULTRA-

PneumonoultramicroscopicSILICovolcanoconiosis *SILIC-, From the Latin meaning "hard stone or flint."

*Silico Silicon based (Pure silicon exists in a shiny dark gray crystalline form and as an amorphous powder.) --That's a root, but as SILICO- it becomes a root modifying something else.

PneumonoULTRAmicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis *ULTRA-, from the Latin for "beyond."

*Ultra Beyond or exceeding (Ultralight) --Without its hyphen it is a word --With its hyphen it is a prefix

PneumonoultramicroscopicsilicoVOLCANOconiosis *VOLCANO- needs no translation

*Volcano usually having a cuplike crater at the summit --It's also a root, but unless we're talking about a very small hard stone volcano, it too is modifying something else. -------Before we solve the riddle of what extremely small, hard, stone, volcanic thing is causing this lung condition, let's pause to call these modifying roots by their proper name: combining forms.

Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis --Did you ever wonder why so many medical terms have an "o" in the middle?

--Its easier to pronounce with vowels in between them. --It's easier, for instance, to say "psychotic" than "psychtic," --The added "o" (it's usually, but not necessarily, an "o") is called the combining vowel --The combining vowel not only makes a word easier to pronounce, it helps us to identify the word's various parts. ---When a root like SILIC- becomes SILICO-, it's called the root's combining form. --The combining forms have brought us to the least familiar part of the word, the part that ultramicroscopicsilico- volcano must modify:

PneumonoULTRAMICROSCOPICsilicovolcanoconiosis *MICROSCOPIC, means "having the nature or character of an instrument for viewing the small." *ULTRA-, because it modifies microscopic *SUPER-, "ULTRAmicroscopic,"

--So we know that ULTRA- in this case it means "super," --MICROSCOPIC is being modified by ULTRA- --ULTRA- can't be modifying PNEUMON-, b/c as a prefix, it modifies something that comes after it, not before --So now look forward in the word to see what's ULTRA-. --What's ULTRA- ? In this word is microscopic, also a word in its own right. --Pretend we don't know what it means, and begin at the end:

Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis *MICROSCOPIC, means "having the nature or character of an instrument for viewing the small." *ULTRA-, because it modifies microscopic

--makes that thing even smaller. --But we still don't know what this ultramicroscopic thing is. --We do know, however, that stand-alone words like "ultra," "microscopic," and "ultramicroscopic" can become modifying word parts. --We investigate our next affix,

COMBINING VOWEL Produces THE COMBINING FORM *The added "o"

-The added "o" (it's usually, but not necessarily, an "o") is called the combining vowel. -The combining vowel not only makes a word easier to pronounce, it helps us to identify the word's various parts. -When a root like PSYCH- or SILIC- becomes PSYCHO- or SILICO-, it's called the root's COMBINING FORM.

1. A medical term with a suffix usually describes a/an _______, a/an _______, or a/an _______.

1. A medical term with a suffix usually describes a CONDITION, an ACTION, or a RELATIONSHIP.

To determine the meaning of a term, look at the parts in this order:

1. Suffix 2. Prefix 3. Root(s)

STEP TWO: IDENTIFY and DEFINE ROOT(S) and

A root is the basis from which a word is derived; an affix is a unit of meaning added to the beginning (prefix) or end (suffix) of a root to make a different word.

STEP TWO: IDENTIFY and DEFINE AFFIXES

Affixes modify the meaning of the root in some way, just as the suffix -ITIS modifies its root by saying that whatever the root denotes is inflamed.

3. True or False? A medical term can only have one root.

False *Combining vowels can join a root to another root in one word

STEP THREE: DETERMINE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ROOT(S) and AFFIXES

Step Three is almost instant with a word like psychosis, whose root-affix relationship is apparent.

STEP ONE: BEGIN AT THE END

The most important rule to remember when analyzing medical terminology is to begin at the end. If a medical term is long enough to break down, it usually describes either a condition, an action, or a relationship. The end of such a term tells us which of the three we're talking about.

WORD ANALYSIS

The separation of the whole into its component parts. Example: Prefix, Root, Combining vowel, Combining form, Suffix, Affix

Tonsillitis Q.Is it a condition, an action, or a relationship? Q.WHY? Tonsillectomy Q.Is it a condition, an action, or a relationship? Q.WHY? Tonsillar Q.Is it a condition, an action, or a relationship? Q.WHY?

Tonsillitis A.Condition: Inflammation of the tonsils A.-ITIS, or "inflammation" Tonsillectomy A.Action: Surgical removal of the tonsils. A.-ECTOMY, or "surgical removal" Tonsillar A.Relationship: Relating to the tonsils A.-AR, or "relating to" *All start with tonsil, but we need that attached ending to know if we're talking about a condition (inflammation), an action (surgery), or a relationship (tonsillar infection).

2. What is the most important rule to remember in analyzing medical terminology? a. Analysis means breaking down into parts b. Begin at the end c. Medical terminology comes from both Greek and Latin d. An affix is a word part attached to the beginning or end of a root

b. Begin at the end *If a medical term is long enough to break down, it usually describes either a condition, an action, or a relationship. The end of such a term tells us which of the three we're talking about.

4. The prefix PSYCHO- is what form of the root PSYCH-? a. The o form b. The vowel form c. The combining form d. The noun form

c. The combining form *When a root like PSYCH- becomes PSYCHO-, it's called the root's COMBINING FORM.

5. Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis is a. a lung disease caused by the inhalation of extremely fine siliceous dust particles. b. a form of pneumoconiosis. c. the longest word in the English language. d. all of the above.

d. all of the above. "condition of dust in the lungs caused by breathing super-small volcanic particles of silica."

AB-

—The hyphen shows the prefix must be attached to the beginning of a root to be part of a complete word.

-AL

—The hyphen shows the suffix must be attached to the end of a root to be part of a complete word.

NORM/O

—The slash shows the vowel has been added to the root in a combining form.

Continued... COMBINING FORM

• combines a root and a combining vowel • can be attached to another root or combining form • can precede a suffix

THE ELEMENTS OF A MEDICAL TERM ARE: COMBINING FORM

• combining form—combination of a root and a combining vowel *The root and combining vowel together. Example: NORM/O.

THE ELEMENTS OF A MEDICAL TERM ARE: COMBINING VOWEL

• combining vowel—vowel that joins a root to another root or to a suffix *A vowel (most often o) added to the end of the root, without changing the meaning. A combining vowel is placed between two roots, or between a root and a suffix that begins with a consonant, to help make the newly combined word easier to pronounce.

Continued... COMBINING VOWEL

• has no meaning of its own • joins a root to another root • joins a root to a suffix • makes a word easier to pronounce • "o"—the most common combining vowel, with "a" as the next most common

THE ELEMENTS OF A MEDICAL TERM ARE: PREFIX

• prefix—the beginning of some words *A unit of meaning attached to the front of a word. Example: The prefix AB- means "away from," so AB-normal is "away from normal."

THE ELEMENTS OF A MEDICAL TERM ARE: ROOT

• root—the foundation of the word that provides its meaning *The core or foundation of the word's meaning. (In the past, you may have heard roots called "stems.") Example: The root of abnormal is NORM, meaning "rule, order."

THE ELEMENTS OF A MEDICAL TERM ARE: SUFFIX

• suffix—the ending of some words *A unit of meaning attached to the end of the word. Example: The -AL in norm-AL is a suffix meaning "pertaining to."

Continued... ROOTS

• the constant, unchanging foundation of a medical term • usually of Greek or Latin origin • one or more is found in most medical terms Affix- A unit of meaning attached to the prefix or suffix that modifies the root in some way.