List of commonly used taxonomic affixes

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This is a list of common affixes used when scientifically naming species, particularly extinct species for whom only their scientific names are used, along with their derivations.

  • a-, an-: Pronunciation: /ə/, /a/, /ən/, /an/. Origin: Ancient Greek: ἀ-, ἀν- (a, an-). Meaning: a prefix used to make words with a sense opposite to that of the root word; in this case, meaning "without" or "-less". This is usually used to describe organisms without a certain characteristic, as well as organisms in which that characteristic may not be immediately obvious.
    Examples: Anurognathus ("tailless jaw"); Apus ("footless"); Apteryx ("wingless"); Pteranodon ("wings without teeth")
  • -acanth, acantho-, -cantho: Pronunciation: /eɪkænθ/, /eɪkænθoʊ/. Origin: Ancient Greek: ἄκανθα (ákantha). Meaning: spine.
    Examples: Acanthodes ("spiny base"); Acanthostega ("spine roof"); coelacanth ("hollow spine"); Acrocanthosaurus ("high-spined lizard"); Acanthoderes ("spiny neck"); Acanthamoeba ("spiny amoeba"); Metriacanthosaurus ("moderately-spined lizard")
  • aeto-: Pronunciation: /aɛto/. Origin: Ancient Greek: ἀετός (aetós). Meaning: eagle.
    Examples: Aetonyx ("eagle claw"); Aetobatus ("eagle ray"); Aetosaur ("eagle lizard")
  • afro-: Pronunciation: /ˈafro/. Origin: Latin: afro-. Meaning: African.
Examples: Afrovenator (African hunter); Afropithecus (African ape); Afrotheria (African beasts)
  • -ales: Pronunciation: /ˈa.lis/. Origin: Latin: -ālis. Meaning: Used to form taxonomic names of orders.
Examples: Enterobacterales ("Order of Intestinal Bacteria"); Nitrosomonadiales ("Nitrogen fixing bacteria order"); Chromatiales ("Purple Sulfur Fixing Bacteria Order")

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