-oma

English

Etymology

From Ancient Greek -ωμα (-ōma), from verbs in -όω (-óō) + -μα (-ma) (from Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥), which lengthens a preceding vowel.

Pronunciation

enPR: ō′mə
(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈəʊ.mə/
(General American, Canada) IPA^(key): /ˈoʊ.mə/
(General Australian) IPA^(key): /ˈəʉ.mə/
(General Australian, New Zealand) IPA^(key): /ˈɐʉ.mə/
(Scotland) IPA^(key): /ˈo.mə/
(India) IPA^(key): /ˈoː.mə/
Hyphenation: -o‧ma

Suffix

-oma (plural -omata or -omas)

(pathology) Forming nouns indicating disease or morbidity.
(pathology, specifically) Forming nouns indicating tumors or masses, which may be non-neoplastic or (more often) neoplastic, and (if the latter) either benign or malignant (cancerous); in accord with present-day understanding of histopathology, the suffix is now nonproductive for non-neoplastic senses.
Synonyms: -cele, -coele

Usage notes

For most nouns formed with -oma, the plural in -omas is more common, because the suffix has been naturalized into English, but the plural in -omata is often preferred by people who believe that the Greek inflection needs to be retained.

Derived terms

English terms suffixed with -oma

acanthoma adenoides cysticum

angioendothelioma

angiolipoleiomyoma

cholangiocarcinoma

choriocarcinoma

craniopharyngioma

ependymoblastoma

esthesioneuroblastoma

fibrofolliculoma

gonadotropinoma

hemangioblastoma

hemangioendothelioblastoma

hemangiopericytoma

hemangiosarcoma

hepatocarcinoma

keratoacanthoma

leiomyoblastoma

lymphangiosarcoma

lymphoepithelioma

medulloblastoma

myxofibrosarcoma

nesidioblastoma

oligoastrocytoma

oligodendrocytoma

oligodendroglioma

phaeochromocytoma

pheochromocytoma

somatostatinoma

Translations

suffix forming nouns indicating disease or morbidity

Dutch: -oom (nl)
Finnish: -ooma
French: -ome (fr) m
Irish: -óma m
Latin: -ōma n (Contemporary Latin)

suffix forming nouns indicating tumors or masses

Catalan: -oma (ca) m
Dutch: -oom (nl)
Finnish: -ooma
French: -ome (fr) m
Irish: -óma m
Latin: -ōma n (Contemporary Latin)
Portuguese: -oma (pt) m
Spanish: -oma (es)

Anagrams

MoA, Amo., MAO, moa, MOA, Amo, AMO, mao, AOM, Mao

Catalan

Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek -ωμα (-ōma).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [ˈo.mə]
IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ˈo.ma]
Hyphenation: -ó‧ma

Suffix

-oma m (noun-forming suffix, plural -omes)

(pathology) -oma (forms the names of tumours or masses)

Derived terms

Catalan terms suffixed with -oma

oligodendroglioma

Further reading

“-oma”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025.

Italian

Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek -ωμα (-ōma).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈɔ.ma/
Rhymes: -ɔma
Hyphenation: -ò‧ma

Suffix

-oma m

(pathology) -oma (forms the names of tumours or masses)

Derived terms

Anagrams

amo, amò, moa

Polish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈɔ.ma/
Rhymes: -ɔma
Syllabification: [please specify syllabification manually]

Suffix

-oma

feminine nominative/vocative singular of -omy

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek -ωμα (-ōma).

Pronunciation

(Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈõ.mɐ/
- (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈo.ma/

(Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈo.mɐ/

Hyphenation: -o‧ma

Suffix

-oma m (noun-forming suffix, plural -omas)

(pathology) -oma (forms the names of tumours or masses)
‎linfo- (“lympho”) + ‎-oma → ‎linfoma (“lymphoma”)
(chiefly biology) -ome (forms the names of masses or sets)
‎bio- (“bio-”) + ‎-oma → ‎bioma (“biome”)

Slovene

Alternative forms

-ema

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *-omь or Proto-Slavic *-ъmь.

Suffix

-oma

Denominal, forms adverbs depicting manner or way from nouns. See -ema for a variant.
red (“order”) → redoma (“regularly”)

namen (“intention”) → namenoma (“intentionally”)

trud (“toughness”) → trudoma (“painstakinly”)

večina (“majority”) → večinoma (“mostly”)

načelo (“principle”) → načeloma (“in principle”)

Derived terms

Slovene terms suffixed with -oma

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek -ωμα (-ōma).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈoma/ [ˈo.ma]
Rhymes: -oma
Syllabification: -o‧ma

Suffix

-oma m (noun-forming suffix, plural -omas)

(pathology) -oma (forms the names of tumours or masses)

Derived terms

Further reading

“-oma”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10

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