melano-, melan-, mela-, melen-

Melanosis (disordered melanin production, or sulfur-containing pigments, with darkening of the skin) of the liver.

Concerning a person with dark hair and a fair complexion: The witch in the story was pictured as a leucomelanous old hag with white skin and black hair and who went outside only at night and stirred around the snakes and toads in her old cauldron.

A word used through the years to refer to what is now called "depression".

In the humoral theory of the ancient Greeks it was the temperament caused by an excess of black bile. In modern psychiatric terminology melancholia is used to refer to especially severe forms of major depressive disorders.

A person who experiences a psychological depression: Some older people who live alone tend to become melancholiacs when the seasons turn to fall and winter, when the days are dark and dreary, and when they don't have any relatives or friends who come and visit.

Another spelling of melancholia.

Black vomit or vomit discolored black in yellow fever and other conditions in which blood collects in the stomach.

1. The presence of black, pigmentary masses in the blood; as in, hemochromatosis (pathology in which iron accumulates in the tissues; characterized by bronzed skin and enlarged liver and diabetes mellitus (a chronic disease associated with abnormally high levels of the sugar glucose in the blood) and abnormalities of the pancreas and the joints).
2. A morbid condition in which the blood contains black pigment either floating freely or imbedded in the white blood corpuscles.

An organism that thrives in or on black loam: Some melangeophiles can be wheat, sugarcane, and cotton that all prosper well in soil rich in sand and organic matter.

Pertaining to the existence of organisms that thrive in or on black loam: Melangeophilous vegetables can grow very well in loamy soil, like tomatoes, green beans, and cucumbers.

The preference of organisms to thrive in or on black loam: When planning her garden, June read about melangeophily as being very important for the successful production of the vegetables that she wanted to grow.