Rules For Singular And Plural Suffixes (Medical Terminology)

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| By Rayray08
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Rayray08
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Quizzes Created: 1 | Total Attempts: 641
Questions: 11 | Attempts: 641

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Medical Terminology Quizzes & Trivia

Just a quick quiz of the rules!


Questions and Answers
  • 1. 

    If the singular  word ends in -a, then you add...

    • A.

      I

    • B.

      E

    • C.

      Ium

    Correct Answer
    B. E
    Explanation
    When the singular word ends in -a, the correct ending to add is -e. This is because in Latin, nouns ending in -a in the singular form typically change to -e in the plural form. This change in ending is a common pattern in Latin noun declensions.

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  • 2. 

    If the singular word ends in -ax, then the plural form ends in...

    • A.

      -ices

    • B.

      -e

    • C.

      -ces

    Correct Answer
    C. -ces
    Explanation
    When a singular word ends in -ax, the correct plural form is formed by changing -ax to -aces. This is because the ending -ax follows the pattern of nouns ending in -ex or -ix, which typically form their plurals by adding -ices. Therefore, the correct answer is -ces.

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  • 3. 

    If a singular word ends in -en, then the plural form ends in...

    • A.

      -es

    • B.

      -ina

    • C.

      -ta

    Correct Answer
    B. -ina
    Explanation
    When a singular word ends in -en, the plural form ends in -ina. This rule applies to certain words in the English language. For example, the singular word "oxen" becomes "oxenina" in its plural form. This is a unique pluralization pattern for words ending in -en and is not commonly seen in other word endings.

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  • 4. 

    If a singular word ends with -is, then the plural form ends with...

    • A.

      -y

    • B.

      -a

    • C.

      -es

    Correct Answer
    C. -es
    Explanation
    When a singular word ends with -is, the plural form typically ends with -es. This is a common rule in English grammar for forming plurals. For example, the singular word "thesis" becomes "theses" in its plural form. Similarly, "analysis" becomes "analyses" and "crisis" becomes "crises". The addition of -es to the end of these words helps indicate that there is more than one of them.

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  • 5. 

    If a singular word ends with -ix, then the plural form ends with...

    • A.

      -ices

    • B.

      -ina

    • C.

      -es

    Correct Answer
    A. -ices
    Explanation
    When a singular word ends with -ix, the correct plural form ends with -ices. This is a common rule in English grammar for forming plurals of words ending in -ix. Examples of words that follow this rule include "matrix" (plural: "matrices") and "appendix" (plural: "appendices"). Therefore, the correct answer is -ices.

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  • 6. 

    If a singular word ends with -ex, then the plural form ends with...

    • A.

      -es

    • B.

      -i

    • C.

      -ices

    Correct Answer
    C. -ices
    Explanation
    When a singular word ends with -ex, the plural form typically ends with -ices. This is a common rule in English grammar for forming plurals, where the -es ending is added to words ending in -ex. For example, the singular word "index" becomes "indices" in its plural form. Therefore, the correct answer is -ices.

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  • 7. 

    If a singular word ends with -ma, then you add...

    • A.

      -e

    • B.

      -ta

    • C.

      -en

    Correct Answer
    B. -ta
    Explanation
    When a singular word ends with -ma, the correct ending to add is -ta. This is because in Finnish grammar, -ta is the genitive singular ending used for words ending in -ma. The genitive case is used to indicate possession or association. Therefore, when a word ends with -ma and we want to express possession or association, we add -ta to the word.

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  • 8. 

    If a singular word ends with -on, then the plural form ends with...

    • A.

      -e

    • B.

      -a

    • C.

      -um

    Correct Answer
    B. -a
    Explanation
    When a singular word ends with -on, the plural form usually ends with -a. This is a common pattern in English grammar for certain words of Greek or Latin origin. Examples include phenomenon (singular) and phenomena (plural), criterion (singular) and criteria (plural), and bacterium (singular) and bacteria (plural). Therefore, the correct answer is -a.

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  • 9. 

    If a singular word ends with -um, then the plural form ends with...

    • A.

      -i

    • B.

      -ices

    • C.

      -a

    Correct Answer
    C. -a
    Explanation
    When a singular word ends with -um, the plural form typically ends with -a. This is a common rule in English grammar for forming plurals. For example, the singular form of the word "datum" becomes "data" in its plural form. Similarly, "stadium" becomes "stadia" and "curriculum" becomes "curricula." Therefore, the correct answer is -a.

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  • 10. 

    If a singular word ends with -us, then the plural form ends with...

    • A.

      -ies

    • B.

      -es

    • C.

      -i

    Correct Answer
    C. -i
    Explanation
    When a singular word ends with -us, the plural form usually ends with -i. This is a common rule in English grammar. For example, the singular form "focus" becomes "foci" in plural. Similarly, "radius" becomes "radii" and "virus" becomes "virii". Therefore, the correct answer is -i.

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  • 11. 

    If a singular word ends with -y, then the plural form ends with...

    • A.

      -ies

    • B.

      -ina

    • C.

      -ces

    Correct Answer
    A. -ies
    Explanation
    When a singular word ends with -y, the correct rule for forming its plural form is to change the -y to -ies. This is because when -y is preceded by a consonant, it is changed to -i- and then -es is added. For example, the singular word "baby" becomes the plural "babies".

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  • Current Version
  • Mar 20, 2023
    Quiz Edited by
    ProProfs Editorial Team
  • Aug 08, 2011
    Quiz Created by
    Rayray08
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