What does -keratosis mean in medical terms?

-keratosis

Meaning: horny growth; thickened skin condition

Type: Suffix

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

Example words using -keratosis

hyperkeratosis
hyper- (excessive) + -keratosis (horny growth) = excessive thickening of the outer skin layer
keratosis
kerat (horn) + -keratosis (horny growth condition) = a thickened, horny skin growth

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.