What does -tome mean in medical terms?

-tome

Meaning: instrument for cutting

Type: Suffix

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

Example words using -tome

microtome
micro (small) + -tome (cutting instrument) = instrument for cutting thin sections
dermatome
derma (skin) + -tome (cutting instrument) = instrument for cutting skin slices

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.