Medical Terminology — Term Building & Abbreviations flashcards
10 of 50 cards free to study here · 5 topics · the whole deck is built into Willys
Decode multi-part terms, apply Greek and Latin plural rules, and read the clinical abbreviations seen on orders and charts — plus why The Joint Commission's Do Not Use list flags U, IU, QD, QOD, trailing zeros and MS.
Learn deck · part of Medical Terminology · written against: Standard allied-health medical terminology course; The Joint Commission do-not-use list. Updated 2026-10-10.
Study the free sample
10 cards from the deck as they are. Flip, rate yourself, filter by topic; your progress stays in this browser.
Tap the card or press Space to flip
The 10 sample cards as a list
-
What four kinds of word parts are used to build medical terms?A word root (the core meaning), a combining vowel (usually o), a prefix at the front and a suffix at the end. A root plus its combining vowel is written as a combining form, such as cardi/o.Building Terms
-
When is the combining vowel dropped, and when is it kept?It is dropped before a suffix that starts with a vowel (gastr + -itis = gastritis) but kept between two roots, even when the second root starts with a vowel (gastr/o + enter + -itis = gastroenteritis).Building Terms
-
What is the plural of vertebra, and which rule does it follow?Vertebrae — singular -a becomes -ae. Other examples: bursa → bursae, conjunctiva → conjunctivae.Plurals
-
What is the plural of diagnosis, and which rule does it follow?Diagnoses — singular -is becomes -es. Other examples: prognosis → prognoses, metastasis → metastases.Plurals
Watch out: words ending in -itis take -itides (arthritis → arthritides). -
What does BP stand for, and how is it recorded?Blood pressure — written as systolic over diastolic in millimeters of mercury (mmHg).Orders & Charting Abbreviations
-
What does HR stand for, and in what unit is it recorded?Heart rate — recorded in beats per minute (bpm).Orders & Charting Abbreviations
-
What does CVA usually mean, and what is its anatomical meaning?Usually cerebrovascular accident, a stroke.Diagnosis Abbreviations
Watch out: in a physical exam it can mean costovertebral angle, the spot where tenderness suggests kidney infection. -
What does MI stand for?Myocardial infarction — death of heart muscle from blocked blood flow, a heart attack.Diagnosis Abbreviations
-
What is The Joint Commission's "Do Not Use" list, and where does it apply?Abbreviations to avoid in medication documentation because they cause dosing errors, in handwritten and free-text electronic orders and on preprinted forms.Do-Not-Use List
Watch out: since January 1, 2026 (Accreditation 360) The Joint Commission's hospital manual no longer spells out this list, though it still requires standardized abbreviations. -
Why is U (for unit) on the Do Not Use list, and what should be written instead?A handwritten U can be misread as 0, 4 or cc, turning a dose into a tenfold error. Write "unit" in full.Do-Not-Use List
Unlock the whole deck
You are studying a free 10-card sample. All 50 cards of Medical Terminology — Term Building & Abbreviations, the other 3 Medical Terminology decks, and spaced-repetition scheduling are built into Willys. 14-day free trial, then $14.99 a year.
In Willys, tap Exam Library at the top of your Decks (or Browse Exam Library… under the + button), find the exam on its shelf or by search, tick it and tap Add.
More Medical Terminology decks
← All Medical Terminology decks, with the study guide and topic outline.
About these cards
Review status: Second-reader reviewed, with corrections applied.
Checked against:
- Checked against "Building a Medical Terminology Foundation" (Kimberlee Carter and Marie Rutherford, CC BY 4.0) (reference only; all wording is original).
- Do-not-use abbreviations checked against The Joint Commission's official "Do Not Use" list (reference only; facts restated in original wording).
These are independent study notes written for Willys. They are not official exam material, may contain mistakes, and are no substitute for your course, your teacher or the exam owner's own publications. Found an error? Tell us — corrections ship as a new version of the deck.
Not clinical guidance. These cards prepare you for an exam. Never use them to make decisions about a patient's care: follow current guidelines, prescribing information and your institution's policies. The decks contain no doses.
Use of these pages is covered by our Terms of Use.