4 topics with concise reviews: definitions, key facts, and class questions.
The third declension in medical Latin is the most extensive and tricky, and the feminine gender within it requires special attention. In this section, we will analyze the characteristic endings that will help you unmistakably determine the gender of terms without consulting a dictionary.
This section covers basic feminine gender signs and the most important exceptions. Instructors most frequently catch students on these exception words (like vas or axis) during tests on anatomical and clinical terminology. To ensure you are prepared, we have compiled an essential lexical minimum—3rd declension nouns that you will encounter from your normal anatomy course to writing prescriptions.
As a bonus and to better memorize grammar, we have included a selection of Latin medical aphorisms. They will help reinforce case endings using real-life phrases that will adorn the speech of any competent physician.
Do words ending in -s in the 3rd declension always belong to the feminine gender?
No, not always. The presence of the -s ending is a formal sign, but there is a whole range of masculine and neuter exceptions that must be memorized separately. In addition, the endings -os and imparisyllabic -es are not inherently signs of the feminine gender.
How to distinguish between bone and mouth in Latin if they are spelled the same in the nominative case?
Both words are neuter exceptions and look like os in the nominative case. They can only be distinguished by their genitive form: mouth is os, oris, while bone is os, ossis.
What is the difference between cervix and collum?
Both words translate as "neck" or "cervix". Cervix belongs to the feminine 3rd declension (e.g., cervix uteri), while collum belongs to the neuter 2nd declension (e.g., collum femoris or collum dentis).
How do you say "a good diagnosis is a good treatment" in Latin?
This expression translates as Diagnōsis bona — curatio bona.
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