Introduction
This topic covers the Greek and Latin prepositions that are used as prefixes in medical terms. Many anatomical positions, processes and clinical conditions are built from a preposition joined to a root. If you know the core meaning of each prefix, you can decode a term you have never seen before, so the aim is to learn the meanings and the common variant forms.
Why prepositions work as prefixes
A preposition tells the position, direction or relation of one thing to another. When it stands in front of a root, it keeps that meaning. The root names the organ, tissue or process, and the prefix says where it lies or how it happens. For example, sub- (under) with cutis (skin) gives subcutaneous, and epi- (on) with gaster (stomach) gives epigastric.
Greek and Latin pairs
Many ideas have both a Greek and a Latin prefix with the same meaning, and medical terms use both. Epi- (Greek) and super- or supra- (Latin) both mean above, and hyper- is the Greek counterpart of the excess sense of super-. Terms are often hybrids, with a Greek prefix on a Latin root or the reverse, so each prefix must be recognised on its own rather than by its language.