-poietic

1. a combining form occurring in adjectives that correspond to nouns ending in -poiesis:

   hematopoietic.

Word History and Origins

Origin of -poietic¹

< Greek -poiētikos. See poetic

Example Sentences

In Rolland's case it was not simply Wagner the artist who exercised this influence, but Wagner the universal poietic personality.

From Project Gutenberg

Tolstoi, the only modern who seems to him poietic, as the great men of an earlier day were poietic, is his teacher and master.

From Project Gutenberg

Words That Use -poietic

What does -poietic mean?

The combining form -poietic is used like a suffix meaning “of or related to making, formation.” It is occasionally used in scientific terms, especially in biology.

The form -poietic comes from Greek -poiētikos, meaning “active” or “effective,” 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 -poietic?

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

Examples of -poietic

A scientific term that uses the form -poietic is hematopoietic, “of or relating to hematopoiesis, the formation of blood or blood cells.”

The hemato- part of the word means “blood,” from Greek haîma. The -poietic part of the word means “of or relating to making, formation.” Hematopoietic literally translates to “of or relating to blood formation.”

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

• erythropoietic
• galactopoietic
• leukopoietic

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

• -phobic
• -phonic
• -tic

Break it down!

The combining form galacto- means “milk.” With this in mind, what does galactopoietic mean?