dacry

Dacry is a medical combining form meaning tear, derived from the Greek dakryon. It is used in terminology to refer to the lacrimal apparatus—the structures involved in tear production and drainage—and to tear-related conditions. Dacry appears in compound terms rather than as a standalone word, and it is commonly encountered in ophthalmology and anatomy.

Common terms incorporating dacry include dacryoadenitis (inflammation of the lacrimal gland), dacryocystitis (inflammation of the lacrimal sac), dacryostenosis (narrowing or obstruction of the nasolacrimal duct), and dacryolith (a stone within the tear drainage system). Other related terms describe tear discharge or inflammation around tear pathways, such as dacryorrhea or dacryocorrhea. Surgical procedures aimed at restoring tear drainage may use the root in names like dacryocystorhinostomy.

The prefix is often used alongside or in proximity to lacr- forms of terminology; both relate to tears and the tear drainage system, but dacry- specifically emphasizes conditions and structures connected to the lacrimal apparatus and tear production. Clinically, terms built from this root are used to describe signs such as epiphora (excessive tearing), mucopurulent discharge, or inflammatory processes affecting tear pathways.

Etymology traces to Greek dakryon, tear. The term appears primarily in medical literature and anatomical nomenclature rather than everyday language, with its use spanning glands, ducts, and related pathological states. See also lacrimal gland, nasolacrimal duct, tear film for related concepts.