Prefixes & Suffixes

The following list is by no means complete, but it may help in understanding some difficult terminology. The following abbreviations are used ; Gr., for the Greek ; L., for the Latin.

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Term Definition
mal-

(Gr., bad), malnutrition , bad nutrition.
lysis

(Gr., destroy), bacteriolysis , desçruction of bacteria.
luci-

(L., light), luciferin , light-producing material.
leuko-

(Gr., white), leukocyte , white blood cell. lip- (Gr., fatty), lipoid , fatty substance.
lepi-

(Gr., scale), Lepidoptera , order of insects with scale wings.
later-

(L., side), lateral , relating to the side.
lac-

(L., milk), lactose , milk sugar.
labi-

(L., lip), labium, lip.
iso

(Gr., equal), isothermic, having equal temperatures.
intra-

(L., inside), intracellular, within a cell.
inter-

(L., between), intercellular, between cells.
infra-

(L., below), infraorbital, below the orbit.
in-

(L., in, into, not, without), invaginate , to infold one part within another.
hypo-

(Gr., under), hypoglossal, situated under the tongue.
hyper-

(Gr., above), hypersensitive, especially sensitive.