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ANTI-: the Greek prefix meaning “against”

ANTI- comes from Greek and means “against”. You can see it in antibacterial, antibody and antidepressant. WordPith uses it in 34 words.

Meaning
against
Origin
Greek
Type
Prefix
Word lists
Core Roots, MCAT / NCLEX / UCAT, Medical Terms, Pharmacology, Psychology, Space & Astronomy, TOEFL / IELTS

Words built from ANTI-

ANTIBACTERIAL

antibacterial

Working against bacteria

Greek bakterion, a little rod, for the shapes first seen down a lens.

ANTIBODY

antibody

A protein that binds a specific antigen

A translation of the German Antikörper, coined in the 1890s.

ANTIDEPRESSANT

antidepressant

A drug used against depression

Latin deprimere, to press down. The illness and the word both describe weight.

ANTIDOTE

antidote

The thing given against a poison

Greek antidoton, given against. Dose and donate share the giving.

ANTIFUNGAL

antifungal

Working against fungal infection

Against the mushroom. Athlete’s foot and thrush are treated with the same class.

ANTIGEN

antigen

Anything the immune system will make an antibody against

A contraction of antibody generator: the word is built from another word’s initials.

ANTIHISTAMINE

antihistamine

What you take when pollen makes you stream

Against histamine, the compound tissues release in an allergic reaction. Coined in 1933.

ANTISEPTIC

antiseptic

Something that kills the germs on a wound

Against plus rotting: Joseph Lister made it surgical practice in the 1860s.

ANTIVIRAL

antiviral

Working against a virus

Latin virus, a slimy liquid or poison, long before anyone could see one.

ANTIANGINAL

antianginal

A drug that relieves chest pain from a starved heart

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTIARRHYTHMIC

antiarrhythmic

A drug that steadies an irregular heartbeat

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTIBIOTIC

antibiotic

A medicine that kills bacteria

Against life: it works by being deadly to microbes and harmless to you.

ANTICHOLINERGIC

anticholinergic

A drug that blocks acetylcholine

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTICOAGULANT

anticoagulant

A drug that keeps blood from clotting

Latin coagulare, to curdle, the same word used of milk turning to cheese.

ANTICONVULSANT

anticonvulsant

A drug that prevents seizures

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTIDIABETIC

antidiabetic

A drug that lowers blood sugar in diabetes

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTIDIARRHEAL

antidiarrheal

A drug that slows the gut

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTIEMETIC

antiemetic

A drug that stops nausea and vomiting

Greek emetikos, causing vomiting. The same root named the emetics that once caused it.

ANTIGRAVITY

antigravity

The thing science fiction wants and physics has not found

Against weight. No experiment has ever seen it, which has not slowed the stories.

ANTIHELMINTHIC

antihelminthic

A drug that kills parasitic worms

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTIHYPERTENSIVE

antihypertensive

A drug that lowers blood pressure

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTIMICROBIAL

antimicrobial

Working against microbes of any kind

Greek mikros, small, plus bios, life: the umbrella over antibacterial and antifungal.

ANTINEOPLASTIC

antineoplastic

A drug that acts against a tumour

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTIPATHY

antipathy

A settled dislike, feeling against

Greek antipatheia. Its opposite, sympathy, is feeling with.

ANTIPLATELET

antiplatelet

A drug that stops platelets clumping

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTIPRURITIC

antipruritic

A drug that relieves itching

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTIPSYCHOTIC

antipsychotic

A drug used against psychosis

Against a condition of the mind. Greek psyche was breath, then soul, then mind.

ANTIPYRETIC

antipyretic

A drug that brings a fever down

Greek pyretos, fever, from pyr, fire. A pyre burns with the same root.

ANTIRETROVIRAL

antiretroviral

A drug that acts against HIV and its kind

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTIRHEUMATIC

antirheumatic

A drug that treats joint inflammation

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTISPASMODIC

antispasmodic

A drug that relieves muscle cramp

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTITHETICAL

antithetical

Directly opposed

Greek antithesis, a placing against. Rhetoric had the figure long before logic had the word.

ANTITUSSIVE

antitussive

A drug that suppresses coughing

Pharmacological vocabulary is built by stacking Greek and Latin elements; the tiles are the elements.

ANTITHESIS

antithesis

The exact opposite of something

Against plus placing: setting one idea directly against another.

Quick check

1. Which word means: A drug that stops platelets clumping?

2. Which word means: Directly opposed?

3. Which word means: A settled dislike, feeling against?

Roots that pair with ANTI-

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