What does gen mean in medical terms?

gen

Meaning: birth, origin, production

Type: Word root · Body system: Whole Body & General Terms

A word root is the core of a word; prefixes and suffixes attach around it. On this page: what gen means, and real medical words that use it, each broken down into its parts.

Example words using gen

genesis
gen (origin) + -esis (process) = the origin or formation of something
pathogen
patho- (disease) + gen (producer) = an organism that produces disease
genetics
gen (origin / heredity) + -etics (science of) = the science of heredity

Shortened forms

Charts and notes shorten long terms — see the Medical Abbreviations guide for the short forms you will meet in real records.

Please note: This section teaches the language of medicine — what word parts mean and how terms are built. It is an educational reference, not medical advice. For the meaning of a word in your own medical record, ask the clinician who wrote it.