-gram Also -gramme.
Something written or recorded in a particular way.
[Greek gramma, something written, from graphein, to write.]
A few examples came into English through French and retained the French spelling -gramme. Modern usage prefers -gram and this is now standard in scientific terminology and US English. The only common word in British English that retains the longer form is programme, and not even then in computing.
In many cases, a word in -graph (see -graphy) refers to an instrument that produces a written record described by -gram—a cardiogram is produced by a cardiograph, and a seismogram by a seismograph. A telegram is a message sent by telegraph. In other cases, they are different names for the same thing, as pictogram or pictograph, a pictorial symbol for a word or phrase. More rarely, the members of a pair have different senses: a hologram is a three-dimensional image formed using laser light but a holograph is something hand written by its author; a monogram is a motif formed by intertwined letters, while a monograph is a detailed written study on a single specialized topic.
For examples in various senses, see the list below.
A number of words have been invented on the model of telegram for greetings messages delivered by a person, often in costume, that are intended to surprise or embarrass the recipient; examples are kissogram, gorillagram, and strippergram.
Words in -gram for weights or masses, such as kilogram, are compounds of the unit of mass, gram, with a prefix indicating a multiple (see the entry Words for multiples). These derive from the Latin gramma, weight.
Examples of words in -gram
Terms for word skills, or manipulating text or language, or symbols:
|anagram||a word formed from another by rearranging its letters||Greek ana, up|
|cryptogram||a text written in a code or cipher||Greek kruptos, hidden|
|epigram||a brief and pointed witty saying||Greek epi, upon, near to|
|lipogram||a composition from which the writer deliberately omits a letter of the alphabet||Greek leipein, to leave out|
|monogram||a motif formed by intertwined letterspictogram, a pictorial symbol for a word or phrase, as in early forms of writing||Latin pict-, painted, from the verb pingere, to paint|
Types of visual representation:
|diagram||a simplified graphical representation||Latin diagramma, from Greek diagraphein, to mark out by lines|
|histogram||a diagram formed from rectangles used in statistics||Greek histos, mask or web|
|hologram||a three-dimensional image formed using laser light||Greek holos, whole|
|parallelogram||a four-sided plane figure with opposite sides parallel||Greek parallēlos, alongside another|
|pentagram||a five-pointed star, often a mystical or magical symbol||Greek pente, five|
|stereogram||an image that gives a three-dimension representation of an object||Greek stereos, solid|
|, or a stereo radiogram.Words for the written results of tests or investigations:audiogram||a written record of a test of a person's hearing||Latin audire, hear|
|cardiogram||a record of muscle activity within the heart produced by a cardiograph||Greek cardia, heart|
|mammogram||an image of the breast formed using X-rays||Latin mamma, breast|
|seismogram||a record of earthquakes produced by a seismograph||Greek seismos, earthquake|
|spectrogram||a record of a spectrum||Latin specere, to look|