-poiesis

1. a combining form meaning “making, formation,” used in the formation of compound words:

   hematopoiesis.

-poiesis

combining form

1. indicating the act of making or producing something specified

   haematopoiesis

Derived Forms

• -poietic, combining_form:in_adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of -poiesis¹

< Greek -poiēsis; poesy, -sis

Word History and Origins

Origin of -poiesis¹

from Greek, from poiēsis a making; see poesy

Example Sentences

The word “poetry” derives from the Greek poiesis, which doesn’t refer to the writing of verse; it just means “making,” in general.

From The New Yorker

Presumably, Shakespeare’s play and Dostoevsky’s novel function as modern equivalents to Sophocles’s “Oedipus the King” and Homer’s epics, the ancient works that Aristotle drew upon in formulating his influential views about poiesis, the art of making.

From Washington Post

We forget that poiesis and metaphor provides children with the skill to use rational thinking in outside-the-box ways.

From Forbes

Techné belongs to bringing-forth, to poiésis; it is something poietic.

From Forbes

The one is a thing grown, the other a thing made; the one a praxis, the other a poiesis: the one the offspring of tendency and indeterminate time, the other of choice and of an epoch.

From Project Gutenberg

Words That Use -poiesis

What does -poiesis mean?

The combining form –poiesis is used like a suffix meaning “making, formation.” It is often used in scientific terms, especially in biology.

The form –poiesis comes from Greek –poiēsis, meaning “a making” or “creation,” from the verb poieîn, “to make.” Another descendant of poieîn is the English word poet. To learn more, check out our entry about poet.

What are variants of –poiesis?

The form –poiesis doesn’t have any variants. However, it is related to the form –poietic, which is used to form adjectives that correspond to nouns ending in –poiesis. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use article about –poietic.

Examples of -poiesis

One example of a scientific term that features the form –poiesis is uropoiesis, “the production and excretion of urine.”

As you may have guessed, the form uro– means “urine,” from Greek oûron. The form –poiesis means “formation.” Uropoiesis literally translates to “urine formation.”

What are some words that use the combining form –poiesis?

• chymopoiesis
• galactopoiesis
• hematopoiesis (using the equivalent form of –poiesis in Latin)
• hemopoiesis
• leukopoiesis (using the equivalent form of –poiesis in Latin)
• ureapoiesis

What are some other forms that –poiesis may be commonly confused with?

• -osis
• -polis

Break it down!

The combining form hemo– means “blood.” With this in mind, what does hemopoiesis mean?