The prefix dys- means which of the following?

• A. Bad, Difficult, Painful
• B. Within
• C. External, Outward
• D. In, Into, Not, Without

Answer: (A)

Dys- signals that something is abnormal, difficult, or painful. It prefixes a root to show trouble or impairment rather than a location or a negation. For example, dysfunction means the function is impaired or abnormal; dyspepsia refers to painful or difficult digestion; dysphagia is difficulty swallowing; dysmenorrhea is painful menstruation. Other options describe where something is or how it isn’t, not the abnormality dys- conveys—within is shown by intra-, external by ecto- or exo-, and not/into meanings by other negation or directional prefixes. So the intended sense of dys- is distinctly about bad, difficult, or painful in the condition described.