1
Chapter 1
Terminology
To the Instructor:
You may want to include terms in the unit on respiration. For many students, this unit is the
introduction to how to talk about anatomy, so discussion of terms fits here well. Needless to say,
the groundwork in terminology helps throughout the students’ learning process. Terminology is,
by its nature, pedantic, but there are some ways to make it a little more palatable (or, at least, to
provide a little more motivation for learning it).
Terminology Class Activity 1
Lecture Discussion Questions
Following is a list of terms from Chapter 1 that students may be familiar with. Read the terms in
the left column aloud and ask students if they know of any related words. Some of the possible
related words are provided in the right column, but students may come up with even more.
The terms for the various disciplines related to anatomy can be seen in some everyday words or
words you’ve had in other courses. Can you think of any related words for the following:
Term
Related word
Cytology (study of tissue)
Cytoplasm
Histology (microscopic study of cellular tissue)
Histamine
Antihistamine
Osteology (study of bones)
Osteoarthritis
Ossify, ossification
Arthrology (study of joints)
Arthritis
Dysarthria
Neurology (study of diseases of neural tissue)
Neuron
Dissection (cutting)
Section (dividing)
Divide
Fascia (tissue surrounding organ)
Face
Surface
Ligament (binds organs or structures together)
Ligature (a binding)
Ligate (to tie)
Transverse section (separates upper and lower)
Transmit (pass across)
Transit
Convert (change with or to)
Conversation (exchange of information)
2
Anterior (toward front)
Ante up (put money up front in poker)
Antebellum (before war)
Anteroom (entryway)
Coronal section (divides into front and back)
Coronation (crowning)
Corona (crown)
Posterior (toward back)
Post hoc (after the fact)
Pre-, post- (before, after)
Dorsal (toward the back)
Dorsal fin
Rostral (toward head)
Rostrum (speaker’s dais)
Superficial (“beyond” + “surface,” outermost)
Super
Super-size(!)
Face
Fascia
Surface