Greek and Latin in Scientific Terminology, Lecture 11
 Andrew Dunning
 20 November 2014

Roots, Part I
CAUL-
•	‘stem’, ‘stalk’ (caulis)
•	CAULI-COL-ous, applies to fungi growing on plant stems; CAUL-ine, pertaining to a stem (applies to leaves growing on the upper portion of a stem; FILI-CAUL-ine, with a threadlike stem
FLAV-
•	‘yellow’ (flavus)
•	FLAV-edo, yellowness of the skin; FLAV-in, one of a group of yellow pigments isolated from various plant and animal sources
FLOCC-
•	‘tuft, as of wool’ (floccus)
•	FLOCCUS, a tuft of wooly hairs on a plant; FLOCC-ose, covered with woollike tufts (applies to bacterial growths)
LABI-, LABR-
•	‘lip’ (labium or labrum)
•	LABIUM, lip, liplike structure; LABIO-GRESS-ion, location of the anterior teeth in front of their normal position
LAT-
•	‘to bear’, ‘to carry’
•	re-LATE; e-LAT-ed; trans-LATE; ab-LAT-ion, removal of a part by amputation, excision, etc.
LEV-
•	‘light’ (in weight) (levis)
•	LEV-ity; LEV-er; e-LEV-at-or, an instrument for lifting a part or for extracting the roots of teeth; al-LEVI-at-ion, the modification of symptoms, the lessening of pain
LIGN-
•	‘wood’ (lignum)
•	LIGNE-ous, woody, of the nature of wood; LIGN-in, a complex substance which, associated with cellulose, causes the thickening of plant cell walls, and so forms wood
LIQU-
•	‘to be liquid’
•	LIQUE-FACT-ion, conversion of material into liquid form
LUMIN-
•	‘light’ (lumen)
•	LUMEN, the cavity of a tubular part of an organ, or the central cavity of a plant cell; SONO-LUMIN-esc-ence, the emission of light by various liquids when traversed by high-frequency sound or ultrasonic waves
MAN(U)-
•	‘hand’ (manus)
•	MANU-FACT-ure, MANU-SCRIPT; BI-MAN-ous, having two hands (applies to certain primates); MANU-DUCT-ion, operation performed by the hands in surgical and obstetric practice
NIGR-
•	‘black’ (niger)
•	NIGR-esc-ent, nearly black, blackish
OSS-
•	‘bone’ (os)
•	OSS-icle, any small bone; DERMO-OSSI-FIC-at-ion, a bone formed in the skin
PROXIM-
•	‘near’, ‘nearest’ (proximus, ‘nearest the body’)
•	PROXIM-ate, nearest, immediate (as proximate cause); PROXIM-al, in dentistry, surface of a tooth next to the adjacent tooth; PROXIMO-LABI-al, pertaining to proximal and labial surfaces of a tooth
SINISTR-
•	‘left’ (sinister)
•	SINISTER; SINISTRO-TORS-ion, a twisting or turning toward the left; SINISTR-in, a levorotatory polysaccharide
SPIN-
•	‘thorn’, ‘spine’ (spina)
•	SPIN-ul-ate, covered with spines; SPIN-ul-at-ion, a defensive spiny covering, or the state of being spinulate
STIP-, STIPIT-
•	‘stalk’ (stipes)
•	STIPIT-ate, stalked; STIP-ule, one of two membranes or foliaceous processes developed at the base of a leaf petiole; BI-STIP-ul-ate, provided with two stipules
STRAT-
•	‘layer’ (stratum)
•	BI-STRAT-ose, with cells arranged in two layers; STRAT-iform, applies to fibrocartilage coating osseous grooves
TUM-
•	‘to swell’
•	TUM-esc-ent, swollen, enlarged; de-TUM-esc-ence, subsidence of a swelling (esp. of erecto-sexual organs following orgasm)
VARI-
•	‘varied’, ‘changing’, ‘spotting’ (varius)
•	VARI-ous; VARI-ety; VARI-egate-d, marked with different colours; VARI-CELLA, chickenpox
VENTR-
•	‘belly’ (venter)
•	VENTRI-LOQU-ism; VENTR-icle, a cavity or chamber, as of the heart or brain; BI-VENTR-al, applies to muscles of the biventer type (= digastric, each of a pair of muscles which run under the jaw and act to open it, from GAST- ‘belly’ because the muscle has two fleshy parts or ‘bellies’ at an angle, connected by a tendon)
Roots, Part II
ARC(U)-
•	‘bow’, ‘arch’ (arcus)
•	ARC-ade; ARCI-FER-ous, applies to the pectoral arch of toads; ARC-iform, shaped like an arch or a bow; ARCU-alia, small, cartilaginous pieces, dorsal and central, fused or free, on the vertebral column of fishes
CALCAR-
•	‘spur’ (calcar)
•	CALCAR-ine, a fissure extending to the hypocampal gyrus on the medial surface of the cerebral hemisphere; CALCAR-ate, having a spur or spur-like point
•	NB: Compare calx, calc- ‘lime’.
CING-, CINCT-
•	‘to bind’, ‘to gird’
•	pre-CINCT; suc-CINCT; CING-ulum, a girdle or the waist; sub-CING-ulum, the lower lip part of the cingulum of rotifers; CING-ul-ectomy, the surgical removal of the cingulate gyrus (in the brain)
CLIV-
•	‘slope’ (clivus)
•	pro-CLIV-ity; de-CLIVE, a lower or descending part; CLIVUS, a slope; post-CLIV-al, the fissure behind the clivus of the cerebellum
CUSPID-
•	‘point’ (cuspis)
•	CUSP, a pocket or fold in the wall of the heart or a major blood vessel that fills and distends if the blood flows backwards, so forming part of a valve; a cone-shaped prominence on the surface of a tooth; a sharp rigid point of a leaf; bicuspid, having two cusps or points; a tooth with two cusps, especially a human premolar tooth; bi-CUSP-id, having two cusps, as bicuspid teeth, or as the mitral valve of the heart
FASCI-
•	‘band’ (fascia)
•	FASCIA, a thin sheath of fibrous tissue enclosing a muscle or other organ; FASCI-ated, showing abnormal fusion of parts or organs, resulting in a flattened ribbon-like structure; FASCI-ola, a narrow colour-band; FASC-itis, inflammation of a fascia
FERR-
•	‘iron’ (ferrum)
•	FERR-ic, relating to iron; FERR-ule, a ring or cap, typically a metal one, which strengthens the end of a handle, stick, or tube and prevents it from splitting or wearing; FERR-ous, containing or consisting of iron; FERRI-HAEMO-GLOB-in, haemoglobin in which the iron is normally in a ferrous state
FLAGELL-
•	‘whip’, ‘whip-like appendage’ (flagellum)
•	FLAGELL-ate; FLAGELL-um, a slender thread-like structure, especially a microscopic whip-like appendage which enables many protozoa, bacteria, spermatozoa, etc. to swim; FLAGELL-in, the structural protein of bacterial flagella
GLABR-
•	‘hairless’, ‘smooth’ (glaber)
•	GLABR-ous, free from hair or down, smooth (chiefly of the skin or a leaf); GLAB-ella, the smooth part of the forehead above and between the eyebrows
LIEN-
•	‘spleen’ (lien)
•	LIEN-al, pertaining to the spleen (applies to an artery, vein, or nerve plexus); GASTRO-LIEN-al, pertaining to the stomach and spleen
LONG-
•	‘long’ (longus)
•	LONGI-tude; LONGI-CORN, having long antennae, former term for longhorn beetle; LONGI-MAN-ous, long-handed
NAS-
•	‘nose’ (nasus)
•	NAS-al; NAS-al-ize; NASO-GASTR-ic, reaching or supplying the stomach via the nose; NASO-PHARYNX, the upper part of the pharynx, connecting with the nasal cavity above the soft palate
NUC-
•	‘nut’ (nux)
•	NUC-leus; NUC-le-ase, an enzyme that cleaves the chains of nucleotides in nucleic acids into smaller units; NUC-ellus, the central part of an ovule, containing the embryo sac; NUC-le-olus, a small dense spherical structure in the nucleus of a cell during interphase.
OS-, OR-
•	‘mouth’ (os)
•	OR-al; OS-culum, a large aperture in a sponge through which water is expelled; OS-CUL-ate, to kiss; OS-CUL-ar, relating to kissing (or to an osculum)
PALLI-
•	‘mantle’, ‘covering’ (pallium)
•	PALLI-um, (in zoology) the mantle of a mollusc or brachiopod, (in anatomy) the outer wall of the mammalian cerebrum, corresponding to the cerebral cortex; PALLI-ate, to make (a disease or its symptoms) less severe without removing the cause; PALLI-at-ive, relieving pain without dealing with the cause of the condition
PRON-
•	‘inclined’, ‘face-down’ (pronus)
•	prone, lying flat, especially face downwards; PRON-ator, a muscle whose contraction produces or assists in the pronation of a limb or part of a limb.
SAC(C)-
•	‘bag’, ‘sac’ (saccus)
•	SACC-ate, dilated to form a sac; SACC-ule (SACC-ulus), a small sac, pouch, or cyst
SIN(U)-
•	‘curve’, ‘hollow’, ‘cavity’ (sinus)
•	in-SINU-ate, suggest or hint in an indirect and unpleasant way; SINUS, a cavity within a bone or other tissue, especially one in the bones of the face or skull connecting with the nasal cavities; SINU-ate, having a wavy or sinuous margin; with alternate rounded notches and lobes; SINU-ous, having many curves and turns; SINUS-oid, a small irregularly shaped blood vessel found in certain organs, especially the liver
STA-, STAT-
•	‘to stand’
•	circumstance; distant; extant; instant; status; substance; STA-ble, not liable to undergo chemical decomposition, radioactive decay, or other physical change; STA-bile, stationary; DI-ST-al, situated away from the centre of the body or from the point of attachment
VITR-
•	‘glass’ (vitrum)
•	VITR-eous, like glass in appearance; VITR-esc-ent, capable of or susceptible to being turned into glass; VITR-eous HUM-our, the transparent jelly-like tissue filling the eyeball behind the lens (cf. aqueous humour); VITR-ectomy, the surgical operation of removing the vitreous humour from the eyeball
Roots, Part III
CALC-, CALCANE-
•	‘heel’ (calx; calcaneus)
•	CALC-aneus (pl. calcanei), the large bone forming the heel; CALC-aneal, pertaining to the heel bone; CALC-aneo-CAVUS, a type of talipes (a deformity of the foot)
CERVIC-
•	‘neck’ (cervix)
•	CERVIC-al, relating to the narrow neck-like passage forming the lower end of the womb (or simply relating to the neck); CERVIC-itis, inflammation of the neck of the womb; CERVICO-BRACHI-ALG-ia, condition in which pain extends from the cervical region to arms or fingers
CORP-, CORPUS-, CORPOR-
•	‘body’ (corpus)
•	CORPOR-al; in-CORPOR-al; CORPS; in-CORPOR-ate; CORPUS-cle, a minute body or cell in an organism, especially a red or white cell in the blood of vertebrates
COX-
•	‘hip’, ‘hip joint’ (coxa)
•	COXA, (in anatomy) the hip bone or hip joint; (in entomology) the first or basal segment of the leg of an insect); COX-ALG-ia, pain in the hip joint; EPI-COX-ite, a small process at the end of the toothed part of the coxa in insects
FIBUL-
•	‘clasp’, ‘brooch’ ‘outer bone of the leg’ (fibula)
•	FIBULA (pl. fibulae), the outer and usually smaller of the two bones between the knee and the ankle; in-FIBUL-ation, the controversial practice of excising the clitoris and labia of a girl or woman and stitching together the edges of the vulva to prevent sexual intercourse; para-FIBUL-ar, pertaining to an accessory element outside the fibula
FREN-
•	‘rein’, ‘bridle’ (frenum)
•	FREN-ulum or FREN-um, (in anatomy) a small fold or ridge of tissue which supports or checks the motion of the part to which it is attached, in particular a fold of skin beneath the tongue, or between the lip and the gum; (in entomology, applying to some moths and butterflies) a bristle or row of bristles on the edge of the hindwing which keeps it in contact with the forewing; FREN-ate, having a frenulum
•	NB: ‘frenzy’, ‘frenetic’ are from Greek PHREN-.
FURC-
•	‘fork’ (furca)
•	FURC-ate; TRI-FURC-ate, to divide into three branches or forks; furca (pl. furcae, an ingrowth of the thorax of many insects; FURC-ula, the wishbone of a bird.
FUS-
•	‘spindle’ (fusus)
•	FUSE-LAGE; FUS-illi, spindle-shaped pasta; FUS-arium, a mould of a large genus which includes a number that cause plant diseases, especially wilting; FUS-ee, a conical pulley or wheel, especially in a watch or clock
•	NB: Not to be confused with FUND-, FUS- (pour, melt), as in ‘fusion’, ‘fuse’.
FUSC-
•	‘dark’, ‘brown’, ‘tawny’ (fuscus)
•	ob-FUSC-ate, make obscure, unclear, or unintelligible; FUSC-ous, dark and sombre in colour; FUSC-in, a brown pigment in the retinal epithelium
GEMM-
•	‘bud’ (gemma)
•	GEM; GEMMA, a small cellular body or bud that can separate to form a new organism; GEMM-ation, asexual reproduction by the production of gemmae; budding; GEMM-ule, a tough-coated dormant cluster of embryonic cells produced by a freshwater sponge for development in more favourable conditions
GEN(U)-
•	‘knee’ (genu)
•	GENU-ine (with reference to the Roman custom of a father acknowledging paternity of a newborn child by placing it on his knee); GENU-FLECT; GENU, the knee; (in Anatomy and Biology) a part of certain structures resembling a knee, in particular a bend in the corpus callosum of mammals; GENI-cul-ate, bent at a sharp angle
GERM-, GERMIN-
•	‘sprout’, ‘bud’, ‘germ’ (germen)
•	GERM; GERM-ane; GERMIN-ate; GERM-icide, an agent that kills germs; GERMI-DUCT, the obiduct of a trematode (a parasitic flatworm)
MAL(E)-
•	‘bad’ (malus)
•	MALE-FACT-or; MALE-VOL-ent; MAL-FEAS-ance; MALE-DICT-ion; MAL-IGN; MAL-IGN-ant; MAL-PRACT-ice; MAL-ING-er, to pretend to be ill in order to escape duty or work; MAL-OCCLUS-ion, imperfect positioning of the teeth when the jaws are closed
NAR-
•	‘nostril’ (naris)
•	NARES, the nostrils; NARI-CORN, the horny part of the nostrils in Turbinares; NARI-form, shaped like nostrils
PAPILL-
•	‘nipple’ (papilla)
•	PAPILLA, a small rounded protuberance on a part or organ of the body; PAPILL-oma (pl. papillomas or papillomata), a small wart-like growth on the skin or on a mucous membrane, derived from the epidermis and usually benign
PECTIN-
•	‘comb’ (pecten)
•	PECTEN (pl. pectens or pectines), any of a number of comb-like structures occurring in animal bodies; PECTIN-ella, a comb-like membranella of some infusoria
PINN-, PENN-
•	‘feather’, ‘wing’, ‘fin’ (pinna; penna)
•	pen; pinnacle; PINNA (in anatomy and zoology) the external part of the ear in humans and other mammals; the auricle; (in botany) a primary division of a pinnate leaf, especially of a fern; (in zoology) any of a number of animal structures resembling fins or wings; BI-PENN-iform, feather-shaped, with sides of a vein of equal size; PINN-ule, a secondary division of a pinnate leaf, especially of a fern; (in zoology) a part or organ like a small wing or fin, especially a side branch on the arm of a crinoid
PULMO(N)-
•	‘lung’ (pulmo)
•	PULMON-ary or PULMON-ic, relating to the lungs; GASTO-PULMON-ary, pertaining to the stomach and the lungs
RAD-, RAS-, RAZ-
•	‘to scrape’
•	RAZE; RAZ-or; e-RAS-er; RAD-ula, (in a mollusc) a rasp-like structure of tiny teeth used for scraping food particles off a surface and drawing them into the mouth; RAST-er, a rectangular pattern of parallel scanning lines followed by the electron beam on a television screen or computer monitor
VAGIN-
•	‘sheath’ (vagina)
•	VAGINA, any sheath-like structure, especially a sheath formed round a stem by the base of a leaf; e-VAGIN-ate, (with reference to a tubular or pouch-shaped organ or structure) to turn or be turned inside out