pheno-

UK/ˈfiː.nəʊ/UK/ˈfɛn.əʊ/US/ˈfiː.noʊ/US/ˈfɛn.oʊ/

prefix

Showing.

“phenotype”

OriginEnglish phenyl ← French phényle ← Ancient Greek ῡ̔́λη (hū́lē) →
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

prefix

alternative before vowel phen- · alternative phaeno- · alternative phæno-

  1. Showing.

    phenotype

  2. chemistryDerived from benzene or containing phenyl.

    phenol, phenobarbital

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*bʰeh₂-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*bʰh₂nyéti
  3. Proto-Hellenic*pʰáňňō
  4. Ancient Greekφαίνω (phaínō)
  5. Frenchphéno-
  6. Proto-Indo-European*swel-der.?
  7. Ancient Greekῡ̔́λη (hū́lē)
  8. Frenchphényle
  9. Englishphenyl
  10. Englishpheno-

# From Ancient Greek φαίνω (phaínō, “to bring to light, make appear; to come to light, appear”). Compare -phan in such words as tryptophan. # From phenyl + -o-.

More words from Ancient Greek

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Polish feno-
  • feno-Translations
Welsh ffeno-
  • ffeno-Translations
Cite this entry
APA

pheno-. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pheno-

MLA

“pheno-.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pheno-. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pheno-,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pheno-.

Source: pheno- on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.