Lophus

This is a list of common affixes used when scientifically naming species, particularly extinct species for whom only their scientific names are used, along with their derivations.

a-, an-: Pronunciation: /ə/, /a/, /ən/, /an/. Origin: Ancient Greek: ἀ-, ἀν- (a, an-). Meaning: a prefix used to make words with a sense opposite to that of the root word; in this case, meaning 'without' or '-less'. This is usually used to describe organisms without a certain typical characteristic, as well as organisms in which that characteristic may not be immediately obvious.