Health and medical English word of the day
Words for the doctor, the pharmacy and your own body, explained plainly, with the sentences you actually need. 8 words so far; a new health word comes about once a week.
To suddenly lose consciousness for a short time, often because of heat, shock or no food.
She fainted when she saw the blood.
I felt hot and dizzy, and then I fainted.
The words in the quiz
Health words quiz
10 questions on the 8 newest words
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Question 1 of 10Meaning
What does faint mean?
If you faint, you suddenly fall down and stop being aware of anything for a few seconds, for example on a very hot day or after a shock.
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Question 2 of 10Situation
Your forehead feels very hot, you are shivering, and the thermometer shows 39°C. You have a…
A body temperature of 39°C is higher than normal, so you have a fever. A rash is on the skin, a migraine is a bad headache, and a cramp is in a muscle.
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Question 3 of 10Gap
After the stroke, my grandfather had six months of ___ to learn to speak again.
Learning to speak again takes regular sessions with a trained expert, and that is therapy. Surgery is a single operation, and quarantine keeps sick people away from others.
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Question 4 of 10Opposite
Which word is the opposite of chronic, when you talk about an illness?
A chronic illness lasts a long time, while an acute one starts suddenly and is over quickly. Mild and serious describe how bad an illness is, not how long it lasts.
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Question 5 of 10Correct use
Which sentence uses treatment correctly?
You have treatment for a problem, so for is the right preposition, not against. Treatment is a noun; the verb is treat, as in the doctor is treating him or he is being treated.
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Question 6 of 10Meaning
What does fracture mean?
A fracture is when a bone breaks or cracks, for example after a bad fall. It is the medical word for a broken bone.
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Question 7 of 10Situation
You are waiting for the bus in the snow without a coat, and your whole body is shaking a little. You are…
Small, quick shaking because of the cold is shivering. You sweat when you are hot, you sneeze through your nose, and fainting means you lose consciousness.
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Question 8 of 10Gap
I took the ___ to the chemist’s and picked up my tablets an hour later.
You hand a prescription to the pharmacist, who then gives you the medicine written on it. You cannot hand over a diagnosis or a symptom.
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Question 9 of 10Correct use
Which sentence uses faint correctly?
Faint is a normal verb, so the past is he fainted, without was, and fainting alone cannot be the verb. After feel we use the adjective: he felt faint.
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Question 10 of 10Meaning
What does fever mean?
When you have a fever, your body is hotter than it should be, for example 39°C, often because your body is fighting an illness.
Keys 1 to 4 pick an answer, Enter goes on.
0 of 10
right on the first try
All health English words so far
8 words, newest first. Each page has usage notes, common mistakes, its word family and five questions.
- faintC1To suddenly lose consciousness for a short time, often because of heat, shock or no food.
- feverB2A body temperature that is higher than normal, usually because of an infection.
- therapyC1Treatment for a physical or mental problem, often involving regular sessions with a trained professional.
- chronicC1Lasting for a long time or happening again and again, usually describing an illness.
- treatmentB2Medical care given to a person to cure an illness or reduce pain.
- fractureC1A break or crack in a bone.
- shiverC1To shake slightly because you are cold, ill or afraid.
- prescriptionB2A doctor’s written instruction that lets you get a particular medicine from a pharmacy.
Health English vocabulary, one word a day
When you are ill, in a clinic or abroad, the right word saves time: symptom, prescription, appointment, sprain, allergic, fever. These pages give a plain meaning, real sentences and the mistakes learners make, so you can describe how you feel and understand the answer.
These pages teach vocabulary only. They are not medical advice, so always ask a doctor or pharmacist about your own health.
Questions about health English words
What is the latest health English word of the day?
The latest word is faint: To suddenly lose consciousness for a short time, often because of heat, shock or no food. A new word joins this topic about once a week, and this page lists all of them.
How many health English words are there?
There are 8 words so far, and a new one is added about once a week, when it is this topic’s turn for the word of the day. Each word has its own page with usage notes, common mistakes, its word family and five questions to test yourself.
How does the health words quiz work?
It asks ten questions about the latest health words: meanings, situations, gaps in sentences, similar words and correct use. A wrong answer can be tried again, and your score counts first tries.
What level are these words?
Most are B1 to C1 on the CEFR scale: past the basics, but not yet used with confidence by most learners. Each word shows its level.