4 syllables: he, pa, to, ma. Stress on to.
hep-uh-TOH-muh
/ˌhɛpəˈtoʊmə/
hepatoma is pronounced hep-uh-TOH-muh (/ˌhɛpəˈtoʊmə/). It has four syllables (he-pa-to-ma), with the stress on "to". Hepatoma is a malignant liver tumor, typically hepatocellular carcinoma that may also refer to rare liver tumors. The term combines Greek roots for liver (hepar) and tumor (oma), and is used in medical contexts to describe a primary liver cancer or hepatic neoplasm. It is a specialized, technical word encountered mainly in clinical literature and pathology.
Hepatoma is a malignant liver tumor, typically hepatocellular carcinoma that may also refer to rare liver tumors. The term combines Greek roots for liver (hepar) and tumor (oma), and is used in medical contexts to describe a primary liver cancer or hepatic neoplasm. It is a specialized, technical word encountered mainly in clinical literature and pathology.
"The patient was diagnosed with hepatoma after imaging revealed a liver mass."
"Biopsy confirmed hepatoma, requiring oncologic and hepatic surgical management."
"Researchers studied the molecular pathways involved in hepatoma to identify targeted therapies."
You say /ˌhɛpəˈtoʊmə/ (US) or /ˌhɛpəˈtəʊmə/ (UK/AU). Primary stress is on the second syllable: he-PA-to-ma. Start with a light schwa-less first syllable: HE-pa-to-ma without notable emphasis on the first. End with a clear, unstressed -ma. An audio reference would align with medical dictation audio where “hepatoma” sounds crisp and syllabic.
Common missteps: (1) Flattening the second stress into the first syllable, saying he-PA-to-ma with incorrect stress; (2) Mispronouncing -to- as a long “toh” instead of a short /tə/ before the stressed syllable; (3) Dropping the final -ma or making it /mə/ instead of a light /mə/. Correction: keep the secondary two syllables light and reduce vowel duration in -to- and -ma; practice with the rhythm of da-da-DA-da.
In US: /ˌhɛpəˈtoʊmə/, with a clear /oʊ/ in the stressed syllable. UK/AU: /ˌhɛpəˈtəʊmə/, where the stressed syllable uses /əʊ/ (same as British diphthong). Rhoticity doesn’t affect the word’s core vowels much, but non-rhotic varieties may have a slightly shorter final /ə/ and different intonation. Overall, primary stress remains on the second syllable across regions.
Two main challenges: (1) the stress pattern places emphasis on the second syllable, which can be non-intuitive for non-medical speakers; (2) the mid-vowel in -to- /tə/ vs a clearer /to/ can cause vowel quality confusion, plus the final schwa-like /ə/ can sound like /ɪ/ to some ears. Focus on keeping the -to- light and the final -ma short and unstressed, with the /e/ in he- barely stressed.
A unique feature is the combination of a strong secondary stress on -to- with a light final -ma, yielding a rhythmic pattern of da-DA-da. Mouth positions require a mid-back tongue height for /ɛ/ in he-, a front-high lip-rounded for /oʊ/ or /əʊ/ in -to-, and a relaxed jaw for the final /mə/. This contrasts with many non-medical multisyllabic terms that have more even syllable stress.
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Hepatoma derives from the Greek hepar, hepat- meaning liver, and -oma, meaning tumor or growth. The term entered medical vocabulary in the context of oncology and hepatology to denote a liver-originating neoplasm, especially malignant. The root hepar appears in numerous terms (hepatology, hepatotoxic). Historically, the delineation between benign and malignant liver tumors advanced in the 19th and 20th centuries with improvements in histopathology and imaging, leading to the standardization of hepatoma and later hepatocellular carcinoma as key diagnoses. First known uses appeared in post-renaissance medical literature as physicians sought precise anatomical descriptors for liver-derived masses, with “hepatoma” becoming common in surgical and oncologic texts by the mid-20th century as terminologies evolved to reflect cellular origin and malignancy.
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Words that rhyme with "hepatoma"
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