| Greek
Verbal Stem |
Meaning
in most English derivatives |
English Derivative |
| agog- |
lead |
pedagogy |
| alg(e)- |
grieve, feel pain |
analgesic |
| arch- |
be first, rule |
|
| ba-/be- |
go |
diabetes (originally formed in Greek
already as a disease), diabasis (obs. a passing thru), anabasis,
acrobat |
| ball-/ble-/bol- |
throw |
emblem, embolism, problem, hyperbole,
ballistic |
| bap- |
dip |
baptist, anabaptist, baptisia (wild
indigo: used for dying), phlobaphene (bark-dye-ene: dye from an
oak's bark) |
| bio- |
live |
aerobic, biotic, |
| cine- |
move |
|
| clin- |
slope |
clinic, enclitic, climate (slope of
earth toward pole?): heteroclite (good word: deviating from the
norm), klinotaxis (turning toward a stimulant) |
| clys- |
wash |
clyster, cataclysm |
| crac-/crat- |
be strong, rule |
|
| crin-/cri(t)- |
judge, separate |
endocrine, criterion, critical |
| do- |
give |
antidote, anecdote, dose, epidote
(named in French by Haüyy in 1801: for the extra length of its
crystal as opposed to some with which it had been confused) |
| dra- |
act |
melodrama, drastic |
| (o)ede- |
swell |
oedipus, edema |
| (a)esthe- |
feel |
anaesthesia, esthete, aesthetic |
| gam(e)- |
marry |
exogamy, endogamy, gamete |
| gen(e)- |
be born |
|
| gno- |
know |
gnostic, agnostic, diagnostic, |
| graph- |
write |
|
| here- |
choose |
heresy, diaeresis (double dots that
take apart), aphaeresis (fore-clipping as in " 'round") |
| lab-/lep- |
take |
lemma, epilepsy (seize upon),
prolepsis (e.g. taking care of objections before they are made),
astrolabe (take the starts), syllable (the exra l is just
epenthetic) |
| lec-/leg-/log- |
gather, choose, read,
speak |
anthology (elegy, eclogue
prologue are from the noun stem) alexia, analects (of Confucius: collection), prolegomena, catalectic, dialogue, eclectic, horloge, |
| ly- |
loose, untie |
|
| math- |
learn |
polymath |
| met- |
measure |
geometry (arithmetic was changed at
one time to arithmetric, but that was by folk etymology): most
English derivatives are from metron, the noun |
| mne- |
remember |
mneme, amnesia, mnemonic |
| pau- |
stop, cease |
pause, diapause (dormant period in
embryonic development) Latin pausa responsible for a lot of the -pause words as well as words like Mariposa (Mary alights: a kind of butterfly), repose, posada, etc. magnetopause, tropopause, stratopause, plasmapause : all use -pause to indicate the outer boundary of something |
| pep- |
digest, cook |
dyspepsia, pumpkin<E pompion (influenced by -kin)<MF popon, pompon<L pepon< gk pepOn (an edible gourd)< from participle pepOn (cooked [by sun])<peptein |
| pha-/phem- |
say |
blaspheme (blas-is a Gk element of
unknown origin/use), blame, dysphemism, euphemism, heterophemy (use
of words other than those intended), aphasia, prophet |
| phag- |
eat |
|
| pher-/phor- |
carry |
christopher, semaphore, chromophore,
gametophore, |
| phra- |
speak |
phrase, periphrasis, periphrastic, |
| phy- |
grow |
-phyte, |
| plas- |
mould, shape |
plastic, thermoplasty, |
| po(i)e- |
make |
poem, poiesis, onomatopoeia |
| pse- |
scour |
palimpsest is the only one I can find |
| psor- |
itch |
psoriasis |
| pto- |
fall |
pto-ma-ine (result of falling down),
peripeteia (a sudden reversal in a drama), piptadenia (trees with
deciduous antheral glands), proptosis (falling forward (of
the eye)=exophthalmia), ptosis (sagging, falling of any organ/part) |
| schi-/schiz- |
split |
|
| scop-/scep- |
look at |
|
| sep- |
make putrid |
|
| spas- |
jerk |
|
| stal-/stl-/stol- |
send |
|
| stig- |
mark, puncture, spot |
|
| strop(h)-/strep(h)- |
turn, twist |
|
| the- |
put |
|
| thea- |
view |
theorem, theory, theater, |
| tom-/tm- |
cut |
|
| trib- |
rub |
diatribe, tribometer (measures
sliding friction), lithotripsy (breaking of calculus in urinary
tract) |
| trop-/trep- |
turn, swerve, change |
trophy (the h has no right to be
there: must be as a result of hyper-correction in French) |
| troph- |
nourish |
hypertrophic, atrophy, eutrophy, |
| zo- |
be alive |
|
| zyg- |
join, yoke |
| Greek Noun |
Greek Verb |
Meaning in most English Derivatives |
English Derivative |
| ἀρχή | ἄρχειν | rule/government |
|
| ὄψ | ὄψεσθαι |
view, see |
ophthalmic (see-room), panoptic |
| ὀρᾶν (an alternate stem of same verb) | panorama, ephor epi + hor |
||
| ζωός | ζωόειν | ||
| βιός | βιόειν | ||
| πάθος | πάθειν | ||
| φόβος | φοβεῖν |
| pedagogy |
monarchy |
hypodermoclysis: subcutaneous
fluid injection |
kakistocracy |
| neurasthenia |
lemma<lambano |
bibliognost: book knower |
schedule<L schedula slip of
paper < scida leaf of paper < Gk schide split piece of
wood <schizein |
| blame< blasphemare |
pheromone< phero + hormone
(<horme) |
blepharoptosis: drooping of an
eyelid |
diaschisis: a type of disruption
of brain activity |
| surgeon |
zoo |
synoptic: offering a general
view, OR affording a common view |
tmesis: splitting up of parts of
a word for effect "a whole nother" "legen-wait for it-dary" "abso-freaking-lutely" |
| crypt-o-zyg-ous |
anabibazon (ascending node of the
earth's orbit with the ecliptic) ana + bibazein (baino) |
bema: platform in church or
synagogue for reading |
euphemism restroom, WC, toilet room (has become pejorated) crapper idiot, imbecile, retarded, and moron were once bland descriptive terms for developmentally delayed mainly centered on religion, poop and pee, or sex. |
| cheirothesia=laying on of the
hands in healing (church) |
compare "litotes" : e.g. "not
exactly thin, or |
| __u_1. a gathering of flowers
anth(bloom)-o-log-y |
a. paragraph |
| _h__2. ear pain |
b. gnotobiotic: a controlled env.
with only a few living things |
| _t__3. pertaining to (things)
pertaining to the result of learning |
c. parabolic |
| _a__4. a writing beside |
d. aphagia |
| _n__5. born from physicians |
e. dose |
| __x_6. one who dips again |
f. analects |
| _c__7. having to do with throwing
beside |
g. dyspepsia |
| __r_8. pertaining to slopes |
h. otalgia |
| _p__9. pertaining to (things)
pertaining to excessive judging |
i. phoresis: nonparasitic
carrying of one kind of animal by another |
| _e__10. a giving |
j. synesthesia |
| _l__11. pertaining to doing |
k. prophet |
| __j_12. a feeling together |
l. drastic |
| _z__13. morbid itching
condition |
m. zodiac |
| _b__14. pertaining to known
living (things) |
n. iatrogenic |
| _w__15. leader of choice |
o. mneme |
| __f_16. (thing)s gathered up |
p. hypercritical |
| _s__17. one measuring through |
q. sceptic |
| _o__18. result of remembering |
r. clinic |
| _g__19. a bad digestion |
s. diameter |
| _k__20. one who says forth |
t. mathematical |
| _i__21. action of carrying |
u. anthology |
| __d_22. a lack of eating |
v. antiseptic |
| _y__23. scoured again |
w. heresiarch |
| _q__24. pertaining to looking |
x. anabaptist |
| _v__25. pertaining to (things)
against rotting |
y. palimpsest |
| _m__26. pertaining to being alive |
z. psoriasis |