FRIDAY  Idiopathic (adjective) The Greek word-forming element “idio” means “one’s own” or “personal.”  A familiar English word using this...

THURSDAY  Pathogen (noun) The root word “gen” refers to something that causes or produces something.  So a pathogen  is a microscopic...

WEDNESDAY Pathology (noun)  Pathological  (adjective) The suffix “ology” refers to a branch of study or knowledge.  Since one meaning of...

TUESDAY  Pathos  (noun) Pathetic  (adjective) The Greek word “pathos” means suffering and is used in English to refer to something that...

MONDAY  Sympathy/Empathy/Antipathy/Apathy  (noun) One meaning of the root word PATH is “feeling.”  The prefix SYM means “with” or...

The ancient Greek root “path” means both “feeling” and “disease.” It made its way into Late Latin, and then into Middle English, and...

Understanding Medical Terminology Goes Beyond Basic Memorization When you're planning to enter healthcare professions, memorizing long...

FRIDAY   Capacious ( adjective) Capacious is an adjective related to “capabilis,” meaning “able to hold.”  A capacious  suitcase will...

THURSDAY Incapacitate (verb) The verb  incapacitate , which combines the root meaning of “able to” with the negating prefix “in,” means,...

WEDNESDAY  Capable ( adjective) To be capable is to have the necessary traits or skills to accomplish something.  A capable plumber is...

TUESDAY Capture  (verb) From the Latin verb “capere,” meaning “to grasp” or “to take hold of,” we get the English word capture .  If you...

MONDAY  Capsule (noun) From the Latin root “CAP,” we get capsule , meaning a small container. A pharmaceutical capsule is usually made of...

The Latin word “capabilis” means “able to,” especially “able to hold” or “able to contain.” A related word, “capere,” is derived from...

FRIDAY   Carcinogen ( adjective) In Greek,” a “karkinos” is a cancer.  Latin picks up this word from the Greeks, using the word...

THURSDAY Genre / Generic (adjective) Because gen  relates to families, words that contain gen  also refer to non-human groups or...

WEDNESDAY    Generate/Regenerate/Degenerate ( verb) To generate  is to produce something. A generator is a machine that can use...

TUESDAY Engender  (verb) To  engender something is to cause it to exist. Clearly this relates to the Latin word “generare,” meaning “to...

MONDAY  Gene (noun) A gene  is a unit of hereditary information that passes from parents to offspring and governs various traits, such...

This is the first post of our new weekly segment called Root of the Week. Read through how roots impact a word a day and send us your...

How can you succeed  and not be a success ? It happened to King Charles I of England. He succeeded  his father King James 1, acceding  to...