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The suffix –oma is used to name tumors. The suffix -oma is used in many medical terms, especially in pathology.

The suffix -oma is probably taken from words like sarcoma and carcinoma. Sarcoma comes from the Greek ��á����ō����, meaning “fleshy growth,” and carcinoma from the Greek, �첹����í��ō����, “sore, ulcer, cancer.”

When used in the plural, -oma can be either -omas or -omata, as in lipomas or lipomata.

What are variants of -oma?

Especially in biology terms, the suffix -oma becomes -ome, as in rhizome, and indicates a mass or specific kind of part.

One example of a medical term you may be familiar with that features the suffix -oma is fibroma, “a tumor consisting essentially of fibrous tissue.”

The first part of the word, fibr-, is a combining form meaning “fiber.” The suffix -oma denotes “tumor.” Fibroma literally translates to “fibrous tumor.”

What are some words that use the suffix –oma?

• adenoma (using the equivalent form of -oma in New Latin)
• angioma
• blastoma
• carcinoma (using the equivalent form of -oma in New Latin and Greek)
• coloboma (using the equivalent form of -oma in New Latin and Greek)
• cystoma
• embryoma
• encephaloma
• epithelioma
• granuloma
• hematoma
• keratoma
• lipoma (using the equivalent form of -oma in New Latin)
• lymphocytoma
• melanoma
• myeloma
• nephroma
• osteoma
• sarcoma (using the equivalent form of -oma in New Latin and Greek)
• teratoma
• trachoma (using the equivalent form of -oma in Greek)

What are some other forms that -oma may be commonly confused with?

• -on
• -one
• omo-

In medicine, the combining forms lipo- and lip- mean “fat.” What kind of tissue does a lipoma consist of?