-algia

1. variant of algo- as final element of a compound word:

   neuralgia.

-algia

combining form

1. denoting pain or a painful condition of the part specified

   neuralgia

   odontalgia

Derived Forms

• -algic, combining_form:in_adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of -algia¹

< New Latin < Greek; algo-, -ia

Word History and Origins

Origin of -algia¹

from Greek algos pain

Example Sentences

Algia Mae Hinton, whose mother taught her music during breaks from farm work.

From New York Times

To get at that thread, Clayton and McElroen took six research trips to Durham, the hub of the Carolina tobacco industry in the 1920s and 1930s, where they filmed and listened to music and reminiscences from such octogenarian musicians as John Dee Holeman, Algia Mae Hinton and Drink Small.

From Washington Post

“Any time you can sit with somebody, whether it’s Drink or Algia, people who are in their 80s and hear just a sliver of what their journey has been, those are good days,” McElroen said.

From Washington Post

It comes from the word “solace,” where the love of a place gives comfort, and “algia,” meaning pain.

From Seattle Times

It comes from the word “solace,” where the love of a place gives comfort, and “algia,” meaning pain.

From Seattle Times

Words That Use -algia

What does -algia mean?

The combining form –algia is used like a suffix meaning “pain.” It is often used in medical terms, especially in pathology.

The form -algia comes from the Greek álgos, meaning “pain.” Similar in meaning and use to algo- are odyno- and -odynia, which derive from odýnē, also meaning “pain.”

What are variants of -algia?

In rare instances, a variant of the combining form -algia is –algy, as in coxalgy.

A corresponding form of -algia combined to the beginning of words is algo-, as in algophobia. Learn more about these forms in our Words That Use articles for each.

Examples of -algia

An example of a word you may have encountered that features -algia is fibromyalgia, “a syndrome characterized by fatigue and chronic pain in the muscles and in tissues surrounding the joints.”

The first two parts of the word, fibro- and my- mean “fiber” and “muscle,” respectively. The form -algia means “pain,” as we have seen. Fibromyalgia literally translates to “muscle fiber pain.”

What are some words that use the combining form -algia?

• arthralgia
• cardialgia
• cephalalgia
• colpalgia
• coxalgia
• encephalalgia
• esophagalgia
• gonalgia
• hepatalgia
• orchialgia
• otalgia
• ostealgia
• mastodynia
• myalgia
• pleuralgia
• podalgia
• sacralgia
• synalgia
• ureteralgia

What are some other forms that -algia may be commonly confused with?

• -ally
• -alis
• -ably
• -logy
• agro-
• allo-
• angio-

Break it down!

The combining form ot- means “ear.” With this in mind, what is an everyday term for otalgia?