The Spanish word 'tomografía' comes from combining two Ancient Greek elements: 'τόμος' (tomos) meaning 'cut' or 'section', and '-graphia' meaning 'writing' or 'description'. These elements were first combined to form the English word 'tomography', which then was borrowed into Spanish as 'tomografía'. This reflects the meaning of the word, as tomography is an imaging technique that creates detailed pictures of the body by taking images in sections or 'slices'.

While 'tomografía' itself is a technical medical term, you might recognize the '-grafía' ending in many other Spanish words like 'fotografía' (photography), 'biografía' (biography), or 'geografía' (geography). All these words share the Greek root '-graphia' meaning 'writing' or 'description'.

English speakers will readily recognize 'tomografía' from the English word 'tomography'. The '-graphy' ending is also familiar from many English words like 'photography', 'biography', and 'geography'. The 'tomo-' part appears in other technical terms like 'microtome' (an instrument for cutting very thin sections) and 'anatomy' (literally 'cutting up' in Greek).