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Anatomy & Physiology vocabulary · Prefixes, Suffixes and Roots

-ology

Meaning in anatomy & physiology, with examples

/ˈɑːlədʒi/suffixCore term

In anatomy & physiology, -ology means: A word ending meaning 'the study of' or 'the science of'. Histology is the study of tissues, cytology the study of cells and neurology the study of the nervous system and its diseases.

In Turkish: -loji, bilimi

How it is used

Used for subjects and medical specialties. The person is usually -ologist (cardiologist, histologist), and the adjective is -ological (physiological). In Turkish the ending becomes -loji: fizyoloji, histoloji.

Example sentences

  1. Histology is the study of tissues under the microscope.

  2. She wants to specialize in neurology after medical school.

Common collocations

  • histology
  • physiology
  • cardiology
  • neurology
  • gastroenterology
  • physiologyThe study of how the body and its parts work, for example how the heart pumps blood, how nerves send signals and how the kidneys make urine.
  • cardio-A word part from Greek meaning 'heart'. It appears as cardi- or cardio- at the start of words and as -cardia or -cardium at the end, as in cardiology, tachycardia and myocardium.
  • neuro-A word part from Greek meaning 'nerve' or 'nervous system'. It appears in neurology, neurotransmitter, neuroanatomy and, in a shorter form, in neuron.
  • -cyteA word ending from Greek meaning 'cell'. It appears in erythrocyte (red blood cell), leukocyte (white blood cell), osteocyte (bone cell) and hepatocyte (liver cell).

More terms: Prefixes, Suffixes and Roots

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.