crystallo-

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

   crystallography.

crystallo-

combining_form

1. crystal

   crystallography

Word History and Origins

Origin of crystallo-¹

< Greek krystallo-, combining form of krýstallos crystal

Words That Use crystallo-

What does crystallo- mean?

Crystallo- is a combining form used like a prefix meaning “crystal.” It is used in some scientific terms, especially in geology and mineralogy.

Crystallo- comes from the Greek krýstallos, meaning “clear ice, rock crystal,” source of the word crystal, as you may have guessed.

But did you guess the following? The Greek krýstallos is related to krýos, meaning “ice cold” or “frost” and source of the combining form cryo-. Learn more in our Words That Use cryo- article.

What are variants of crystallo-?

When combined with words or word elements that begin with a vowel, crystallo- becomes crystall-, as in crystallize.

When combined with word elements that come from Latin, crystallo- occasionally becomes crystalli-, as in crystalliferous.

Examples of crystallo-

The combining form crystallo- can be found in the term crystallography, meaning “the science dealing with crystallization and the forms and structure of crystals.”

As we know, crystallo- means “crystal.” The second half of the word, -graphy, from the Greek graphia, denotes “a process or form of drawing, writing, representing, recording, describing, etc., or an art or science concerned with such a process.” Essentially, crystallography is the science of crystals.

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

• crystalloblastic
• crystallology
• crystallogeny
• crystallographer
• crystallographic
• crystallographic axis
• crystallomancy
• crystallomagnetic
• crystallotype

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

• christo-
• chryso-
• cryo-
• cyano-

Break it down!

The combining form -geny can variously refer to the “production,” “origin,” “development,” or “formation” of something. What, then, is crystallogeny?