CHAPTER 1 - INTRODUCTION TO MEDICAL LANGUAGE |
FROM QUESTION TO PERFECTION| STUDY WITH
CONFIDENCE!
Course Code:
Course Title:
Programme:
Academic Year: 2026/2027.
Duration: 2 Hours.
Total Marks: 100.
Candidate Instructions:
1) Write your Registration Number on every answer booklet used.
2) Answer ALL questions in Section A and ANY TWO (2) questions in Section B.
3) Read each question carefully before answering.
4) Begin each question on a new page.
5) The marks for each question are indicated in brackets.
6) This paper consists of several printed pages, including this page.
7) Ensure your copy is complete before the examination begins.
8) Unauthorized materials and communication with other candidates are not permitted.
Turn Over.
APPHIA – Crafted with Care and Precision for Academic Excellence.
1
, Why is medical language necessary? Answer: Allows healthcare professionals to
1. communicate clearly
2. communicate quickly
3. comfort patients
Where did medical language come from? Answer: Primarily from two ancient languages:
Greek and Latin
Eponyms Answer: Named after person who discovered or invented something (Lou Gehrig's
disease)
Acronyms Answer: Made up of the first letters of each of the words that make up a phrase
(MRI)
Symbol Emphasis Answer: Knowing where to put the correct punctuation. Placing on correct
syllable- cardiac: KAR-dee-ak
Don't think of medical language as words to be memorized ... Answer: Instead, think of medical
language as sentences to be translated
Combining vowel Answer: The vowel used to combine two word roots or a word root and
suffix (usually the letter "o")
Root: arthr/o Answer: joint
Root: cardi/o Answer: heart
Root: enter/o Answer: small intestine
Root: gastr/o Answer: stomach
Root: hepat/o Answer: liver
Root: neur/o Answer: nerve
Root: hem/o or hemat/o Answer: blood
Root: my/o or muscul/o Answer: muscle
Root: angi/o or vas/o or vascul/o Answer: vessel
Root: derm/o or dermat/o or cutane/o Answer: skin
Root: pneum/o or pneumon/o or pulmon/o Answer: lung
Root: gen/o Answer: creation, cause
Root: hydro/o Answer: water
Root: morph/o Answer: change
APPHIA – Crafted with Care and Precision for Academic Excellence.
2
FROM QUESTION TO PERFECTION| STUDY WITH
CONFIDENCE!
Course Code:
Course Title:
Programme:
Academic Year: 2026/2027.
Duration: 2 Hours.
Total Marks: 100.
Candidate Instructions:
1) Write your Registration Number on every answer booklet used.
2) Answer ALL questions in Section A and ANY TWO (2) questions in Section B.
3) Read each question carefully before answering.
4) Begin each question on a new page.
5) The marks for each question are indicated in brackets.
6) This paper consists of several printed pages, including this page.
7) Ensure your copy is complete before the examination begins.
8) Unauthorized materials and communication with other candidates are not permitted.
Turn Over.
APPHIA – Crafted with Care and Precision for Academic Excellence.
1
, Why is medical language necessary? Answer: Allows healthcare professionals to
1. communicate clearly
2. communicate quickly
3. comfort patients
Where did medical language come from? Answer: Primarily from two ancient languages:
Greek and Latin
Eponyms Answer: Named after person who discovered or invented something (Lou Gehrig's
disease)
Acronyms Answer: Made up of the first letters of each of the words that make up a phrase
(MRI)
Symbol Emphasis Answer: Knowing where to put the correct punctuation. Placing on correct
syllable- cardiac: KAR-dee-ak
Don't think of medical language as words to be memorized ... Answer: Instead, think of medical
language as sentences to be translated
Combining vowel Answer: The vowel used to combine two word roots or a word root and
suffix (usually the letter "o")
Root: arthr/o Answer: joint
Root: cardi/o Answer: heart
Root: enter/o Answer: small intestine
Root: gastr/o Answer: stomach
Root: hepat/o Answer: liver
Root: neur/o Answer: nerve
Root: hem/o or hemat/o Answer: blood
Root: my/o or muscul/o Answer: muscle
Root: angi/o or vas/o or vascul/o Answer: vessel
Root: derm/o or dermat/o or cutane/o Answer: skin
Root: pneum/o or pneumon/o or pulmon/o Answer: lung
Root: gen/o Answer: creation, cause
Root: hydro/o Answer: water
Root: morph/o Answer: change
APPHIA – Crafted with Care and Precision for Academic Excellence.
2
