acro-, acr-

(Greek: high, highest, highest point; top, tip end, outermost; extreme; extremity of the body)

acrocephalic (s) (noun), acrocephalics (pl)
An individual who suffers from a head that is pointed: In the story Eve was reading, the main character, an acrocephalic having a cone-shaped head, was so sad by not being accepted in her tribe where she lived.
acrocephalic (adjective), more acrocephalic, most acrocephalic
Pertaining to a person whose head is pointed at the top: In the fantasy story that Jill read, the men and boys in certain tribes wee acrocephalic, but not the women or the girls.
acrocephalopolysyndactylism (s) (noun), acrocephalopolysyndactylisms (pl)
An inherited disorder that includes abnormalities of the skull, face, hands, and feet: A person's acrocephalopolysyndactylism starts with the closure of some sutures of the skull and results in a tall peaked head, shallow eye sockets, and undeveloped cheekbones.

The development of acrocephalopolysyndactylism also results in fingers and toes that are fused, and the thumbs and the big toes have overly broad ends.

acrocephalopolysyndactyly (s) (noun), acrocephalopolysyndactylies (pl)
One of four heritable malformation syndromes recognizable at birth; acrocephalopolysyndactylia: Acrocephalopolysyndactyly is characterized by premature craniosynostosis, syndactyly, and polydactyly.
acrocephalosyndactylia (s) (noun), acrocephalosyndactylias (pl)
Craniostenosis characterized by acrocephaly and syndactyly (fusion of fingers and toes), probably occurring as an autosomal dominant trait and usually as a new mutation: Acrocephalosyndactylia refers to the premature closure of "cranial sutures" resulting in malformation of the skull. The "cranial sutures" refer to a type of fibrous joint between the bones of the head.

acrocephalous (adjective) (not comparable)
1. Pertaining to the state of suffering from a cone-shaped skull: Thomas had strong acrocephalous feelings because he had a head formed in a conoid, and sometimes he was laughed at in school.
2. Concerning a person having a peaked skull: The acrocephalous head of the new next-door neighbor drew a lot of attention from from the others who lived close by.
acrocephaly (s) (noun), acrocephalies (pl)
1.The situation of misery by having a pointed skull: Raymond thought that people with cone-shaped heads must be in a state of acrocephaly, and have a hard time of being accepted by others.
2. The form of the human skull which shows a congenital abnormality in which the top part takes on a cone shape: When little Stella drew a picture of a girl, she drew the head having a contour of an acrocephaly, having the lower part much broader than the top.
acrocinesia (s) (noun) (no pl)
Excessive motility; abnormal freedom of movement; acrokinesia; acrokinesis: Adam was so flexible with his limbs and was always in action that his P.E. teacher thought that he had a case of acrocinesia.
acrocinesis (s) (noun) (no pl)
Abnormal amount of movement: Jeffrey could never sit still and was always in motion, so his parents took him to see Dr. Green who diagnosed him as having a case of acrocinesis.
acrocinetic (adjective), more acrocinetic, most acrocinetic
Concerning the excessive movement of the legs and arms: James certainly had a reocurring case of acrocinetic motility which caused his parents quite a lot of concern, so they went to see a doctor about it.
acrocontracture (s) (noun), acrocontractures (pl)
A condition of shortening and hardening of muscles, tendons, or other tissue: Acrocontrctures often lead to deformity and rigidity as a result of spasms or the thickening and scarring of connective tissue. And this usually occurs because of an injury or because of the lack of muscular balance of the joints of the hands or feet.
acrocyanosis (s) (noun), acrocyanoses (pl)
A circulatory disorder in which the hands, and less commonly the feet, are continually cold and blue: Acrocyanosis is a condition in which the fingers and wrists of the hands and feet are blue or with a red discoloration of the skin of the fingers and wrists with excessive sweating and coldness of the fingers and toes because of inadequate circulation of the blood.

acrocyanotic (adjective), more acrocyanotic, most acrocyanotic
Referring to the persistent blue discolouration of the digits: Jimmy had an acrocyanotic disorder which occurred in his hands and feet and which made his them quite blue!
acrodendrophilous (adjective), more acrodendrophilous, most acrodendrophilous
A description of creatures that live in treetop areas: Vultures are considered to be acrodendrophilous because they make their nests on the tops of trees.
acrodermatitis (s) (noun), acrodermatitises; acrodermatitides (pl)
Inflammation involving the skin of the extremities: Acrodermatitis is a skin disease which mainly affects the hands and feet, and might be accompanied by a slight fever. It is caused by an infection with Borrelia burgdorferi, a bacterial species.

Quiz If you would like to take a self-scoring quiz over many of the words in this unit, then click Acro- Quiz.