Minor Roots: -POD

Get on the good foot

Saturdays are perfect days for etymological surprises. Surprise—we’re talking about the minor affix -POD today!

The word root PED- meaning foot appears in a wide range of English words from pedicure to moped. The root PED- also appears in a wide range of forms while still retaining its essential meaning. For example, many words (especially biological terms) use a variant of this root as a suffix meaning foot., as in quadruped, millipede, or arthropod. Let’s focus on the most common words using the suffix -POD.

arthropod (noun) - an invertebrate of the phylum Arthropoda, which includes insects, spiders, or crustaceans
BREAKDOWN: ARTHRO- (joint) + -POD (foot)

brachiopod (noun) - a marine invertebrate of the phylum Brachiopoda, which comprises the lamp shells
BREAKDOWN: BRACHIO- (arm) + -POD (foot)

cephalopod (noun) - a predatory mollusk of the class Cephalopoda, which includes octopi and squids
BREAKDOWN: CEPHALO- (head) + -POD (foot)

gastropod (noun) - a mollusk of the class Gastropoda, which includes snails and slugs
BREAKDOWN: GASTRO- (stomach) + -POD (foot)

monopod (noun) - any seat, stand, or support with one leg
BREAKDOWN: MONO- (one) + -POD (foot)

pseudopod (noun) - a temporary growth on a protoplasmic body, often used for locomotion
BREAKDOWN: PSEUDO- (false) + -POD (foot)

tetrapod (noun) - any four-limbed vertebrate animal of the superclass Tetrapoda, which includes all vertebrates higher than fishes
BREAKDOWN: TETRA- (four) + -POD (foot)

tripod (noun) - any seat, stand, or support with three legs
BREAKDOWN: TRI- (three) + -POD (foot)

“A question is a trap and an answer is your foot in it.” —John Steinbeck