apo-
- a prefix occurring originally in loanwords from Greek, where it was joined to verbs, deverbal forms, and other parts of speech. Among its functions in Greek, apo- has the spatial sense “away, off, apart” (apogee; apocope; apostasy; apostrophe); it occurs with deverbals that denote a response or defense (apodosis; apology) and is found on verbs having perfective force relative to a corresponding simple verb (apoplexy; aposiopesis). In modern scientific coinages in English and other languages, apo- marks things that are detached, separate, or derivative (apocarpous; apoenzyme).
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Also especially before a vowel, ap-.
Origin of apo-
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
apo-
ap-
- away from; offapogee
- indicating separation ofapocarpous
- indicating a lack or absence ofapogamy
- indicating derivation from or relationship toapomorphine
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Word Origin for apo-
from Greek apo away, off
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for apo-
before vowels ap-, word-forming element meaning "from, away from, separate, free from," from Greek apo "from, away from; after; in descent from," in compounds, "from, asunder, away, off; finishing, completing; ceasing from; back again," from PIE root *apo- "off, away" (cf. Sanskrit apa "away from," Avestan apa "away from," Latin ab "away from, from," Gothic af, Old English of "away from").
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
apo-
- Away from; off:aponeurosis.
- Separate:apocrine.
- Without; lacking; not:apoferritin.
- Related to; derived from:apomorphine.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.