CMC Medical Terminology & Anatomy 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which suffix means 'incision into' or 'cutting into'?
- -tomy (Correct answer)
- -ectomy
- -ostomy
- -plasty
Correct answer: -tomy
The suffix -tomy means incision into, as in appendectomy vs. appendotomy — -tomy cuts in, -ectomy removes.
Question 2: The term 'osteoporosis' literally translates to:
- Porous bone condition (Correct answer)
- Bone inflammation
- Bone tumor
- Bone softening
Correct answer: Porous bone condition
Osteo- means bone, por- means porous, and -osis means condition, so osteoporosis is literally a porous bone condition.
Question 3: Which abdominal region is located in the upper middle area of the abdomen?
- Epigastric (Correct answer)
- Umbilical
- Hypogastric
- Right iliac
Correct answer: Epigastric
The epigastric region is the upper middle region of the abdomen, located above the stomach area.
Question 4: The prefix 'poly-' means:
- Many or much (Correct answer)
- Few or little
- Around or surrounding
- Between
Correct answer: Many or much
Poly- means many or much, as seen in polyuria (excessive urine production) and polycythemia (excess red blood cells).
Question 5: Which combining form relates to the gallbladder?
- Cholecyst/o (Correct answer)
- Choledoch/o
- Chol/o
- Hepat/o
Correct answer: Cholecyst/o
Cholecyst/o specifically refers to the gallbladder, while choledoch/o refers to the common bile duct and chol/o means bile.
Question 6: The term 'subcutaneous' means:
- Beneath the skin (Correct answer)
- On top of the skin
- Within the skin
- Through the skin
Correct answer: Beneath the skin
Sub- means below or beneath, and cutaneous relates to skin, so subcutaneous means beneath the skin.
Question 7: Which directional term means toward the back of the body?
- Posterior (dorsal) (Correct answer)
- Anterior (ventral)
- Superior
- Medial
Correct answer: Posterior (dorsal)
Posterior (also called dorsal) refers to the back surface of the body, opposite of anterior (ventral).
CMC Medical Terminology & Anatomy 3
Which suffix means 'incision into' or 'cutting into'?