Which combining form means the membrane around the lungs?

Which combining form means the membrane around the lungs?

• A. Lip
• B. Pulmon
• C. Melan
• D. Pleur

Answer: (D)

Think about the structure name that identifies a membrane around an organ. The membrane surrounding the lungs is the pleura, and the combining form for that is pleur- (often pleuro- before vowels). So the form pleur- is used to build terms relating to this membrane, like pleural or pleuritis. The other roots point to something else: lip- means fat, pulmon- relates to the lungs themselves, and melan- means pigment. That's why pleur- is the correct choice.

Think about the structure name that identifies a membrane around an organ. The membrane surrounding the lungs is the pleura, and the combining form for that is pleur- (often pleuro- before vowels). So the form pleur- is used to build terms relating to this membrane, like pleural or pleuritis. The other roots point to something else: lip- means fat, pulmon- relates to the lungs themselves, and melan- means pigment. That's why pleur- is the correct choice.