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Tomo- is a combining form used like a prefix meaning “a cut, section.” It is used in a few medical terms.

Tomo- comes from the Greek ��ó���Dz�, meaning “cut, slice.” This root, which can also mean “piece, roll of paper, or book,” is also the source of the word tome. Crack open the history of tome at our entry for the word.

Also related to ��ó���Dz� is atom. What’s the big idea behind atoms and cutting? Find out in our Origin section for this term.

Related to tomo- are the combining forms -ectomy, -tome, -tomy, and -tomous. Slice into their specific meanings at our �y��vlogs That Use articles for the forms.

One example of a term from medicine that features the combining form tomo- is tomography. Tomography refers to various techniques that are used to obtain an X-ray photograph of a selected plane section of the human body or some other solid object.

As we know, tomo- means “a cut, section.” The second part of the word, -graphy, denotes the process of drawing, representing, recording, imaging, or the like. Tomography has a literal sense of “getting an image of a section.”

What are some words that use or are related to the combining form tomo-?

• tomium
• tomogram
• tomograph

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

• topo-
• tono-

Most words that begin with the letters tomo- do not use the combining form tomo- to denote “a cut, section.” Tomorrow is an example. Learn what the letters in tomorrow are doing today at our entry for the word.

The combining form –gram means “drawing” or “image.” What does tomogram literally mean?