2026 Briggs BTG Medical Interpreter Practice Test – Complete Exam Prep

Understanding medical prefixes helps you identify the organ involved. The prefix encephal- comes from the Greek enkephalon for the brain, and it shows up in words describing brain-related conditions such as encephalitis or encephalopathy. That’s why it points to the brain. Other prefixes point to different organs: for the heart you’d see cardio- or coron-, for the lungs pulmon- or pneumon-, and for the kidneys nephro- or ren-. So encephal- specifically indicates the brain.