Which two roots both mean White?

Which two roots both mean White?

• A. ALBIN/O and LEUK/O
• B. CHLOR/O and CYAN/O
• C. ERYTHR/O and MELAN/O
• D. XANTH/O and AB-

Answer: (A)

White is conveyed in medical terminology by specific color roots. The two that mean white are ALBIN/o and LEUK/O. ALBIN/o comes from Latin albus, referring to whiteness, as in albinism, where pigment is lacking. LEUK/O comes from Greek leukos, also meaning white, and appears in words like leukocyte (a white blood cell) and leukemia (a condition involving white blood cells). The other color roots point to different colors: CHLOR/o means green, CYAN/o means blue, ERYTHR/o means red, MELAN/o means black, and XANTH/o means yellow. AB- is a prefix meaning away from or without, not a color root.

White is conveyed in medical terminology by specific color roots. The two that mean white are ALBIN/o and LEUK/O. ALBIN/o comes from Latin albus, referring to whiteness, as in albinism, where pigment is lacking. LEUK/O comes from Greek leukos, also meaning white, and appears in words like leukocyte (a white blood cell) and leukemia (a condition involving white blood cells). The other color roots point to different colors: CHLOR/o means green, CYAN/o means blue, ERYTHR/o means red, MELAN/o means black, and XANTH/o means yellow. AB- is a prefix meaning away from or without, not a color root.