What does -genesis mean in medical terms?

-genesis

Meaning: production; origin

Type: Suffix

A suffix goes at the very end of a word, after the root. On this page: what -genesis means, and real medical words that use it, each broken down into its parts.

Example words using -genesis

pathogenesis
patho (disease) + -genesis (production) = the origin and development of a disease
spermatogenesis
spermato (sperm) + -genesis (production) = production of sperm cells

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.