What term means to cut around?

• A. Circumcise
• B. Collagen
• C. Colonoscopy
• D. Colostomy

Answer: (A)

The idea being tested is how prefixes and roots combine to convey meaning. Circumcise literally means to cut around. The prefix circum- means around, and the suffix -cise comes from Latin caedere, to cut. Put together, it describes making a circular cut around an edge or boundary. In medical use, circumcision refers to performing that circular incision around the foreskin. The other terms don’t express cutting around: collagen is a protein; colonoscopy is viewing the colon with a scope; colostomy is creating an opening from the colon to the abdominal wall. So the term that means to cut around is circumcise.