Medical school introduces an enormous volume of new terminology—often estimated in the range of 10,000–20,000 new terms over the course of training. These include anatomical structures, physiological processes, disease names, diagnostic procedures, and pharmacological agents. Early on, students can feel overwhelmed because nearly every sentence in a lecture may contain multiple unfamiliar words.
This is why learning medicine is often compared to studying a foreign language. Like in fields such as Latin or Ancient Greek, much of medical vocabulary is built from common roots, prefixes, and suffixes. For example, once you know that “cardio-” refers to the heart and “-itis” means inflammation, terms like “carditis” or “pericarditis” become easier to decode. Over time, students stop memorizing isolated words and instead start recognizing patterns and constructing meaning from word components—just like becoming fluent in a new language.
As fluency develops, “medical speak” begins to feel natural. What initially required conscious effort—translating and interpreting terms—becomes almost automatic. Students and physicians can quickly process complex information, communicate efficiently with colleagues, and even think in medical terminology without mentally converting it back to everyday language. In clinical settings, this fluency allows for precise, concise communication that would otherwise take much longer in lay terms.
In short, while the early stages of medical education can feel like immersion in a completely unfamiliar language, consistent exposure and practice transform that complexity into a kind of second nature. I truly feel very blessed and privileged to have learned the language of medicine. It is an incredible honor, and something I never take for granted.
A very common tendency among young people who intend to go to medical school is to take Latin during high school. It is so common that a reference to this tendency was featured on a recent episode of The Pitt. As it turns out, I took 2 years of Latin in high school, in anticipation of going to medical school. Though I don’t remember much from my two years of high school Latin, having a knowledge of Latin helped out tremendously while I attended medical school.
That’s because:
I internalized roots, prefixes, and suffixes
I got comfortable with unfamiliar word structures
I learned to infer meaning instead of memorizing blindly
That “mental framework” sticks even when the formal knowledge fades.
1. The language of medical terminology A huge portion of medical vocabulary is derived from Latin and Greek. Words like cardiology (cardio = heart, Greek; -logy = study of) or renal (Latin renes = kidneys) are essentially built from these roots. When you’ve studied Latin, you’re not just memorizing terms—you’re decoding them.
So instead of rote memorization, you instinctively break words apart:
hepatosplenomegaly → liver + spleen + enlargement
subcutaneous → under + skin
That gives you a major efficiency advantage in medical school, where the vocabulary load is enormous.
2. Precision and consistency in communication Medicine depends on extremely precise language. Latin (and Greek) provides a standardized, unchanging base. Unlike modern languages, Latin isn’t evolving, so terms don’t shift in meaning over time. That stability is why anatomical structures and diagnoses are still named this way worldwide.
3. Anatomy is basically Latin immersion Anatomy in particular is saturated with Latin:
foramen magnum
corpus callosum
If you’ve had Latin, even at a basic level, these aren’t just intimidating strings—they’re descriptive phrases. That makes learning anatomy feel more logical and less arbitrary.
4. Training your brain for pattern recognition Latin study emphasizes grammar, structure, and parsing complex sentences. That skill translates surprisingly well to medicine:
analyzing symptoms → like parsing a sentence
recognizing patterns → like identifying word roots and endings
It builds a kind of mental discipline that helps with clinical reasoning and absorbing dense information.
5. Historical tradition (that still lingers) Medicine in Europe was formalized when Latin was the language of scholarship. Universities, early medical texts, and anatomical naming conventions all used Latin. Even though modern education has moved on, the terminology never got replaced—so the legacy persists.
I absolutely love this Ted Talk by Caroline McHugh, so I am reposting it a second time. She is a brilliant woman who speaks so eloquently and honestly about the sense of self.
I cannot understand why this phrase has become so popular, because it is incredibly stupid and redundant. I cringe every single time I hear someone utter it, and am dismayed by the number of people I know who have adopted this into their current communication behaviors. Why has it suddenly become so trendy to state the obvious in this manner? I can’t help but think that everyone who utters this string of words either hasn’t given much thought to the circular reasoning buried in it, or has developed a pathological and resigned attitude towards life in which circumstances are shrugged off. Come on guys, take a little responsibility, would you?
If we look at res ipsa loquitur logic, this legal term indicates that someone is presumed to be negligent if that individual had control over what caused the injury. But since I took two years of Latin in high school, I am more intrigued by the original semantics and logic of this particular phrase. If we apply this idea of negligence to the statement, “it is what it is”, does that mean that people are blaming fate, or the lockdown, for the unraveling of society which has occurred in the past three years, or are they simply resigning themselves to fate when they utter that? All I know is that I have heard it far too often in the past couple of years, and it is raising my ire.
I truly enjoy and appreciate what Ethan Ryan from The Fiddleback has to say about this idiotic statement:
“It is what it is” is a waste of words, a waste of breath. I mean, sure, I get it. It expresses the same sentiment as the French “C’est la vie!” But still, it irks me. It’s just a repetitive series of defeatist monosyllables. Why not just say “It is,” or for that matter, “It’s”?
Of course it is what it is! How could it be anything but it?
The only context in which that phrase would be appropriate would be if somebody asked “Is it what it is?” and you said, “Yes, it is what it is.” Presumably you’d have this conversation in an assisted living home with a demented loved one attempting to categorize an ice cream cone.
When you write “It is what it is” as a mathematical algorithm it looks like this:
it = it
In logic, this is called the law of identity, which states that an object is the same as itself. “A is A” is a tautology. Here are some more:
1 = 1
pineapple = pineapple
J = J
☺ = ☺
poop = poop
X = X
Those are analytical facts, verified by their consistency within the rules of a symbol system. But they’re also stupid and irrelevant. They’re true under all possible circumstances, and they demand little of the world for their truth. You don’t need evidence to back up the claim “Poop is what poop is.”
Here’s another tautology:
Seems logical, right? I don’t know, I’m not a logician.
What concerns me are rhetorical tautologies such as:
“I am what I am.” ~ God talking to Moses
“I yam what I yam.” ~ Popeye talking to Olive Oyl
“Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose.” ~ Gertrude Stein
“A horse is a horse, of course, of course.” ~ the Mr. Ed theme song
“It is what it is what it is what it is what it is what it is what it is.” ~ this essay
It is it. A is A. But redundancies are redundant, aren’t they? Be succinct. Next time your umbrella breaks, or your toilet gets clogged, or your house burns down, just shrug and say “It’s.”
That’s obnoxious advice, I know. Defeatism gets us nowhere. Life is hard, but that’s no excuse to spout meaningless clichés. There are so many fantastic adjectives and nouns and verbs out there, humming in a deep pocket of your brain. Use your words. Don’t just say “It is what it is.” We already know that.
Wittgenstein said philosophy is the headache you get from banging your head up against the limits of language. When I came across that line I decided I was done studying philosophy. Years later, my head is still hurting. Philosophy is dangerous.
As of today, April 12th, I have completed a 567 day streak on Duolingo, and I have every intention of continuing my daily language practice on the user friendly app. I began this streak with Japanese and Spanish as my daily languages, and added Portuguese at the beginning of March because I want to have some familiarity with the language when I visit Portugal in May. Duolingo is an excellent app for brushing up on languages or even learning a new one, and Duolingo Plus is only $84 per year. For that price, you can practice as many languages as you’d like.
I have practiced a bunch of languages, besides the ones I mentioned previously, on Duolingo over the past several years (French, German, Hungarian, Latin, Italian, and Hawaiian), and I love the fact that I can jump back into practicing any of those languages if I’d like. Though I took French and Latin in high school, I am rusty in those languages, and I only know a small amount of Hungarian, German, Italian, and Hawaiian. It is important for me to polish my Spanish speaking and reading skills constantly, not only because I was immersed in it when I would visit my dad and his children from his second marriage, but also because I don’t want to lose the skills I learned from Spanish classes I took throughout grade school, high school and college. I also feel a responsibility to learn as much Japanese as I can, since I am half Japanese, took Japanese in college, and intend to visit Japan again in the future.
Duolingo truly is a fantastic way to learn any language which is in their system. I highly recommend it!
Check out Matthew Inman’s amusing blog post which covers ten words he believes people should stop misspelling. I must say that I agree wholeheartedly with Matt regarding the issue of misspelled words. For those who are interested, you can even purchase a poster of the blog post, which could serve as a not-so-subtle reminder to those afflicted with spelling and grammar faults to pay attention.
I cannot understand why this phrase has become so popular, because it is incredibly stupid and redundant. I cringe every single time I hear someone utter it, and am dismayed by the number of people I know who have adopted this into their current communication behaviors. Why has it suddenly become so trendy to state the obvious in this manner? I can’t help but think that everyone who utters this string of words either hasn’t given much thought to the circular reasoning buried in it, or has developed a pathological and resigned attitude towards life in which circumstances are shrugged off. Come on guys, take a little responsibility, would you?
If we look at res ipsa loquitur logic, this legal term indicates that someone is presumed to be negligent if that individual had control over what caused the injury. But since I took two years of Latin in high school, I am more intrigued by the original semantics and logic of this particular phrase. If we apply this idea of negligence to the statement, “it is what it is”, does that mean that people are blaming fate, or the lockdown, for the unraveling of society which has occurred in the past year and a half, or are they simply resigning themselves to fate when they utter that? All I know is that I have heard it far too often since spring of last year, and it is raising my ire.
I truly enjoy and appreciate what Ethan Ryan from The Fiddleback has to say about this idiotic statement:
“It is what it is” is a waste of words, a waste of breath. I mean, sure, I get it. It expresses the same sentiment as the French “C’est la vie!” But still, it irks me. It’s just a repetitive series of defeatist monosyllables. Why not just say “It is,” or for that matter, “It’s”?
Of course it is what it is! How could it be anything but it?
The only context in which that phrase would be appropriate would be if somebody asked “Is it what it is?” and you said, “Yes, it is what it is.” Presumably you’d have this conversation in an assisted living home with a demented loved one attempting to categorize an ice cream cone.
When you write “It is what it is” as a mathematical algorithm it looks like this:
it = it
In logic, this is called the law of identity, which states that an object is the same as itself. “A is A” is a tautology. Here are some more:
1 = 1
pineapple = pineapple
J = J
☺ = ☺
poop = poop
X = X
Those are analytical facts, verified by their consistency within the rules of a symbol system. But they’re also stupid and irrelevant. They’re true under all possible circumstances, and they demand little of the world for their truth. You don’t need evidence to back up the claim “Poop is what poop is.”
Here’s another tautology:
Seems logical, right? I don’t know, I’m not a logician.
What concerns me are rhetorical tautologies such as:
“I am what I am.” ~ God talking to Moses
“I yam what I yam.” ~ Popeye talking to Olive Oyl
“Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose.” ~ Gertrude Stein
“A horse is a horse, of course, of course.” ~ the Mr. Ed theme song
“It is what it is what it is what it is what it is what it is what it is.” ~ this essay
It is it. A is A. But redundancies are redundant, aren’t they? Be succinct. Next time your umbrella breaks, or your toilet gets clogged, or your house burns down, just shrug and say “It’s.”
That’s obnoxious advice, I know. Defeatism gets us nowhere. Life is hard, but that’s no excuse to spout meaningless clichés. There are so many fantastic adjectives and nouns and verbs out there, humming in a deep pocket of your brain. Use your words. Don’t just say “It is what it is.” We already know that.
Wittgenstein said philosophy is the headache you get from banging your head up against the limits of language. When I came across that line I decided I was done studying philosophy. Years later, my head is still hurting. Philosophy is dangerous.
Source: 123rf.com Image ID : 52651500 Copyright : Nebojsa Markovic
Has someone ever just completely disappeared from your life, without any explanation? It is an incredibly confounding experience, and has occurred more than once for me. What blows my mind is that older adults, people in their forties and fifties, have exhibited this bizarre and rude behavior in recent years, so the phenomenon of “ghosting” cannot be pegged as a young person’s habit.
I honestly think that when a person ghosts anyone for reasons such as, they’re not feeling the same way about the other person (usually a dating scenario), or they have become bored with someone, the act of ghosting is truly a sign of immaturity and lack of emotional availability, which means that the ghostee is actually lucky to be cut loose. However, when someone completely disappears without an explanation, whether it’s a dating situation, a more serious relationship, or a friendship, the person being ghosted often grapples with extreme mental anguish because there is no closure.
Even if the explanation for the person’s ghosting on another might be painful to hear, I bet most individuals would prefer to hear that explanation instead of scratching their heads in bewilderment, thinking, what in the world HAPPENED? I completely understand that feelings can change, but I also was raised to believe that you should offer a reason why you no longer wish to talk to or associate with someone. If you don’t respond to texts, etc., and the ghostee can clearly see that you are doing fine, you are basically indicating to that person that they aren’t even worthy of any bit of respect. And while there are situations in which the ghostee might have done something egregiously wrong, in most situations, the person doing the ghosting is merely fickle, disrespectful, and narcissistic. That’s been my observation in every situation in which I have been ghosted.
What are your thoughts on being ghosted? If you have ghosted someone in the past, why did you choose to ghost someone instead of providing a reason why you wanted to discontinue communication?
“Clutter is postponed decisions.” – Barbara Hemphill
I absolutely love this brilliant quote by Barbara Hemphill which Kerry Thomas mentions in this TED Talk video, because it is completely true. No matter what type of clutter plagues you, it may be impeding you in a profound way from living a free and peaceful life.
I hate physical clutter and fight it all the time by conducting purges throughout the year. But physical clutter is only one type of clutter, and Ms. Thomas breaks down the different types into the following:
Physical
Mental
Emotional
Digital
Spiritual
Although I feel that I have a good handle on physical clutter in my environment, the other categories are more challenging. I control digital clutter by going through my email inboxes on a daily basis, consolidating images and deleting old text messages on my phone. I also think I have a decent handle on spiritual clutter because I meditate daily, take meditation and yoga courses, and also practice breathwork. I try to forgive those who upset me, and I also make sure to avoid toxic people.
The areas where I get hung up (and I suspect many others do) is with mental and emotional clutter. Ms. Thomas states that mental clutter consists of fears one might have, and it also could stem from the judgmental words of others, while emotional clutter consists of negative thoughts and behaviors. The thing is, I have fears which keep my mind racing, and I also fall into the trap of negative thinking from time to time, especially when I am in the middle of a crisis. So by no means am I completely free of clutter. However, I constantly strive to clear up anything which is depressing me or slowing me down.
It’s incredibly liberating to get rid of items which are damaged, unused, or worn, and it’s also wonderful to let go of all the mental blockades to happiness and freedom. One thing I always try to remind myself is that worrying about things will never bring about a solution. The only thing worry ends up doing is eroding one’s demeanor and sparking anxiety.
I suggest that you think about the different areas in which clutter might be adversely affecting your life, and adopt behaviors which counteract such clutter.
dr. stacey naito's blog 