Which combining form means colon?

• A. Col/o
• B. Arthr/o
• C. Mening/o
• D. Myel/o

Answer: (A)

Combining forms point to the body part a term is about, and the vowel that links the root to a suffix helps build the full word. The form col/o designates the colon, the part of the large intestine. That makes it the best choice for a term relating to the colon, because any colon-related term will use this col/o linking form.

The other roots refer to different structures: arthr/o means joint, mening/o refers to the meninges around the brain and spinal cord, and myel/o denotes the spinal cord or bone marrow. So col/o is the one that specifically means colon.