What does -tonia mean in medical terms?
-tonia
Meaning: tone; tension
Type: Suffix
A suffix goes at the very end of a word, after the root. On this page: what -tonia means, and real medical words that use it, each broken down into its parts.
Example words using -tonia
dystonia
dys- (abnormal) + -tonia (tone) = abnormal muscle tone causing twisting movements
dys- (abnormal) + -tonia (tone) = abnormal muscle tone causing twisting movements
hypertonia
hyper- (excessive) + -tonia (tone) = increased muscle tone
hyper- (excessive) + -tonia (tone) = increased muscle tone
hypotonia
hypo- (decreased) + -tonia (tone) = decreased muscle tone
hypo- (decreased) + -tonia (tone) = decreased muscle tone
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.