What does the prefix POST- mean?

What does the prefix POST- mean?

• A. After, behind
• B. Before
• C. Within
• D. During

Answer: (A)

POST- signals after in time. It’s the prefix used to describe something that occurs following a reference point, such as an event or procedure. For example, postoperative means after surgery, postpartum after birth, and posttraumatic after trauma. While you might hear the idea of something being “behind” in a sequence, the standard use of post- in medical terms is temporal—after. That’s why the best answer is after, with the note that spatial “behind” isn’t the typical sense for this prefix (that would be there or posterior in other terms).

POST- signals after in time. It’s the prefix used to describe something that occurs following a reference point, such as an event or procedure. For example, postoperative means after surgery, postpartum after birth, and posttraumatic after trauma. While you might hear the idea of something being “behind” in a sequence, the standard use of post- in medical terms is temporal—after. That’s why the best answer is after, with the note that spatial “behind” isn’t the typical sense for this prefix (that would be there or posterior in other terms).