-ology, -logy, -ologist, -logist

(Greek: a suffix meaning: to talk, to speak; a branch of knowledge; any science or academic field that ends in -ology which is a variant of -logy; a person who speaks in a certain manner; someone who deals with certain topics or subjects)

The word -ology is a back-formation from the names of certain disciplines. The -logy element basically means "the study of ____". Such words are formed from Greek or Latin roots with the terminal -logy derived from the Greek suffix -λογια (-logia), speaking, from λεγειν (legein), "to speak".

The suffix -ology is considered to be misleading sometimes as when the "o" is actually part of the word stem that receives the -logy ending; such as, bio + logy.

Through the years -ology and -logy have come to mean, "study of" or "science of" and either of these suffixes often utilize the form of -ologist, "one who (whatever the preceding element refers to)".

The examples shown in this unit represent just a small fraction of the many words that exist in various dictionaries.

metapsychology (s) (noun), metapsychologies (pl)
1. A systematic attempt to discern and describe what lies beyond the empirical facts and laws of psychology; such as, the relations between body and mind, or concerning the place of the mind in the universe.
2. In psychoanalysis, or psychoanalytic metapsychology, psychology concerning the fundamental assumptions of the freudian theory of the mind, that entail five points of view:
a. Dynamic, concerning psychologic forces.
b. Economic, concerning psychologic energy.
c. Structural, concerning psychologic configurations.
d. Genetic, concerning psychologic origins.
e. Adaptive, concerning psychologic relations with the environment.
3. A name given to speculative inquiry regarding the ultimate nature of the mind and its functions which cannot be studied experimentally.
4. A term applied to theories about the origin, structure, and functions of the mind that extend beyond the empirical laws of psychology.
meteorology (s) (noun), meteorologies (pl)
1. The study of, or the science of, the motions and phenomena of the atmosphere; especially, with a view to forecasting the weather: Before the last third of the 20th century, the term meteorology was used primarily in reference to the study of the winds, temperature, clouds, and other elements associated with weather.
2. Knowledge of the conditions of weather, atmospheric changes, etc., of a particular region: Meteorology is the scientific study of the physical and chemical phenomena of the atmosphere; especially, as they relate to weather and climate conditions.

Meteorology is now commonly used to include all of the scientific studies of the role of the atmosphere in the global climate systems.

Science of the atmosphere including weather conditions.
© ALL rights are reserved.

Weather predictions.
© ALL rights are reserved.

Go to this Word A Day Revisited Index
so you can see more Mickey Bach illustrations.

meteoropathology (s) (noun), meteoropathologies (pl)
The pathology of conditions caused by weather or atmospheric circumstances: Some weather-sensitive people are very interested in meteoropathology and watch out for weather alerts of conditions that might affect their health in any way, for example by sudden and drastic changes in temperature.
metrologist
metrology
miasmology (s) (noun), miasmologies (pl)
1. The studies of unwholesome or noxious atmospheres, effluvia, or emanations.
2. The study of or research about fogs and smogs; especially, those affecting air pollution levels.
microbiological (adjective)
microbiologist
Someone who specializes in the science of microbiology or the science concerned with micro-organisms.
microbiology
The science concerned with tiny organisms; including, fungi, protozoa, bacteria, and viruses.
microecology
The ecology of a microhabitat (very small area).
microphytology
miscapnologist (s) (noun), miscapnologists (pl)
A specialist in the study of the mistakes and dangers of smoking.
miscapnology (s) (noun), miscapnologies (pl)
The study of the mistakes and dangers of smoking.
misologist (s) (noun), misologists (pl)
1. A despiser of excessive discussions or of arguments: Several misologists, among other staff members of the school, loathed sitting in meetings for hours listening to long drawn-out discourses which seemed to have no end and no results.

Is it possible that there are husbands and wives who divorced each other because they were misologists?

A misologist can also be a person of action who prefers to plunge ahead to accomplish something instead of talking about it so much.

2. A hater of over reasoning or critical comments: As a young pre-teenager, Larry became a misologist because he never wanted to listen to his parents trying to explain why he was not allowed to do the same things as grown-ups, like staying up late or watching crime movies on TV.
Anyone who hates or distrusts arguments or discussions with others.
© ALL rights are reserved.

Go to this Word A Day Revisited Index
so you can see more of Mickey Bach's cartoons.

misology (s) (noun), misologies (pl)
A hatred of quarrels, contentions, or disputes: Young Becky had an aversion to asking her parents for things she wanted because they were always trying to get her to justify why she felt that she needed them; and so, a condition of misology had developed over the years.
A hatred of enlightenment or a closed mind to reasoning or knowledge.
© ALL rights are reserved.

Go to this Word A Day Revisited Index
so you can see more of Mickey Bach's cartoons.

Cross references of word families related directly, or indirectly, to: "talk, speak, speech; words, language; tongue, etc.": cit-; clam-; dic-; fa-; -farious; glosso-; glotto-; lalo-; linguo-; locu-; logo-; loqu-; mythico-; ora-; -phasia; -phemia; phon-; phras-; Quotes: Language,Part 1; Quotes: Language, Part 2; Quotes: Language, Part 3; serm-; tongue; voc-.