chemo

[kee-moh, kem-oh]

noun, plural che·mos. Informal.

chemotherapy or a chemotherapy treatment.

Origin of chemo

by shortening; see -o

chemo-

a combining form with the meanings “chemical,” “chemically induced,” “chemistry,” used in the formation of compound words: chemotherapy.

Also especially before elements of Latin origin, chemi-.Also especially before a vowel, chem-.

Origin of chemo-

chem-, extracted from chemical or chemistry + -o- or -i-

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for chemo

Contemporary Examples of chemo

“I would sit with her and talk while she was in chemo at UCLA,” he says.
Oh Yes, He’s The Great Connector: Jason Hirschhorn’s Expertly Curated World
Lloyd Grove
October 17, 2014
He goes to the hospital practically every day for what he called a quick shot of chemo.
Can America’s Favorite Ex-Con Mayor Win Again?
David Freedlander
June 22, 2014
Her body was being destroyed by chemo and I became devoted to helping her.
Ricki Lake: The ‘Weed the People’ Filmmaker on Why We Should Legalize Marijuana
Ricki Lake
May 20, 2014
After surgery, the patients all received the standard therapy of chemo, radiotherapy and endocrine therapy.
How Big Pharma Holds Back in the War on Cancer
ProPublica
April 23, 2014
He points to the IV stand in the corner of the picture, clearly showing it was taken during one of his chemo sessions.
When Harry Met Cancer
Itay Hod
April 10, 2014

British Dictionary definitions for chemo

chemo

noun

informal short for chemotherapy

chemo-

chemi- or before a vowel chem-

combining form

indicating that chemicals or chemical reactions are involvedchemotherapy

Word Origin for chemo-

New Latin, from Late Greek khēmeia; see alchemy

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for chemo

chemo-

before vowels chem-, word-forming element denoting "relation to chemical action or chemicals," from comb. form of chemical (adj.), used to form scientific compound words from c.1900.

chemo in Medicine

chemo

[kē′mō]

Chemotherapy or a chemotherapeutic treatment.

chemo-

pref.

Chemicals; chemical:chemotherapy.