English Medical & Pharmacy Vocabulary

Level: B1. When you are unwell in an English-speaking country, you need words fast: to book an appointment, describe a symptom, and understand the label on your medicine. This page gives you that everyday medical and pharmacy vocabulary, grouped by where you use it, each word with a plain meaning and a short example.

By the end of this page you can…

…make an appointment, describe how you feel, name common treatments, and understand simple instructions on a prescription or medicine label.

How this list was chosen

Every word here comes from the English frequency list (hermitdave/FrequencyWords), which ranks words by how often they appear in a large collection of everyday subtitles. From that list we kept the health, clinic and pharmacy words a B1 learner needs and grouped them by situation — people, symptoms, treatment, the pharmacy — rather than by rank. The Rank column is the word’s real position in the list: a lower number means more common. Specialist words such as ‘antibiotic’ or ‘prescription’ sit lower down (higher numbers), which is normal.

People and places

Rank	Word	Meaning	Example
371	doctor	a person who treats ill people	You should see a doctor about that cough.
629	hospital	a place that treats serious illness	She was taken to hospital overnight.
1126	patient	a person getting medical care	The doctor saw ten patients that morning.
1498	operation	surgery; a medical procedure	He had an operation on his knee.
1564	nurse	a person who cares for ill people	The nurse took my blood pressure.
1730	surgery	an operation; also a UK doctor’s office	The surgery opens at eight o’clock.
2454	ambulance	a vehicle that takes you to hospital	Someone called an ambulance at once.
3154	clinic	a place for check-ups and minor care	Book an appointment at the clinic.
8679	pharmacy	a shop that prepares and sells medicine	Collect the tablets from the pharmacy.
11578	chemist	a pharmacy (British English)	The chemist is next to the post office.

Symptoms and how you feel

Rank	Word	Meaning	Example
477	blood	the red liquid inside you	There was a little blood on the cut.
589	sick	unwell; (BrE) about to vomit	I feel sick after that bus ride.
736	pain	the feeling when something hurts	I have a sharp pain in my side.
1283	pressure	force; here, blood pressure	The nurse checked my blood pressure.
1461	emergency	a sudden, serious situation	In an emergency, call for help at once.
1511	breathe	to take air in and out	It hurts when I breathe in deeply.
1887	ill	unwell; sick	She has been ill for a week.
2835	fever	a high body temperature	He has a fever and a bad headache.
4914	infection	illness caused by germs	The cut became red from an infection.
5383	dizzy	feeling you might fall over	I stood up too fast and felt dizzy.
5629	cough	to push air out of the throat noisily	I have a dry cough at night.
9830	ache	a dull, continuous pain	My muscles ache after the gym.
9404	swollen	larger than normal from injury or illness	My ankle is swollen after the fall.

Treatment and getting better

Rank	Word	Meaning	Example
1763	medicine	something you take to get better	Take the medicine after food.
2129	wound	an injury that breaks the skin	The nurse cleaned the wound carefully.
2143	appointment	a fixed time to see someone	I have a dentist appointment at four.
2234	treatment	the care given for an illness	The treatment lasts two weeks.
2421	cure	to make an illness go away	Rest and fluids can cure a cold.
2765	urgent	needing action very soon	This is urgent; please come quickly.
3886	heal	to get better (of a wound)	The cut will heal in a few days.
4014	injury	damage to the body	He recovered from the injury slowly.
4114	recover	to get well again	She is recovering well after surgery.
4360	swallow	to make food or a pill go down	It hurts to swallow when I have a cold.
10338	bandage	a strip of cloth to cover a wound	Put a clean bandage on the cut.
12659	allergy	a bad reaction to a food or substance	I have an allergy to peanuts.

At the pharmacy

Rank	Word	Meaning	Example
1651	cream	a soft substance you rub on skin	Rub the cream on twice a day.
4043	pill	a small, round piece of medicine	Take one pill with water.
6068	rash	red, itchy marks on the skin	A rash appeared on my arm.
6124	prescription	a doctor’s written order for medicine	The doctor gave me a prescription.
6600	dose	the amount of medicine to take	Do not take more than the stated dose.
7489	injection	medicine given by a needle	The nurse gave me an injection.
9523	vaccine	a substance that protects from a disease	The vaccine is free at the clinic.
9942	tablet	a flat, round piece of medicine	Take one tablet twice a day.
23801	antibiotic	medicine that fights bacterial infection	Finish the whole course of antibiotics.

Example sentences

Play each line, then say it aloud. These use the health words in natural, everyday patterns.

I'd like to make an appointment to see the doctor.

Booking: 'make an appointment'.
What seems to be the problem?

A question the doctor often asks.
I have a cough and a slight fever.

Illnesses take 'have a'.
It hurts when I breathe in deeply.

'It hurts when…' describes a symptom.
I stood up too fast and felt dizzy.

'Feel' + adjective for a state.
My ankle is swollen after the fall.

'Swollen' = larger than normal.
The nurse took my blood pressure.

Who does what at the clinic.
The doctor wrote me a prescription.

'Write / give a prescription'.
Take one tablet twice a day with food.

A standard label instruction.
Do not take more than the stated dose.

'Dose' = the amount to take.
Collect the medicine from the pharmacy.

'Collect from the pharmacy'.
Rub this cream on the rash twice a day.

'Rub on' + a skin treatment.
Finish the whole course of antibiotics.

A common pharmacy instruction.
I have an allergy to peanuts.

'Have an allergy to' + the trigger.
The cut should heal in a few days.

'Heal' is used for wounds.
She is recovering well after the operation.

'Recover' = get well again.
In an emergency, call an ambulance.

Fixed advice for urgent cases.
It hurts to swallow when I have a cold.

'It hurts to' + verb.
Please keep this bandage clean and dry.

Wound-care instruction.
The vaccine is free at the local clinic.

'Vaccine' at a clinic.

Recap cheat-sheet

A few patterns to remember before the quiz.

Cheat sheet: English medical and pharmacy words — symptoms and label phrases

Quick recap before the quiz.

Point	Example
an illness you ‘have’	I have a cough / a fever
a state you ‘feel’	I feel dizzy / sick
book a visit	make an appointment
label phrase	one tablet twice a day

Practice

Medical and pharmacy practice

Try each one, then press Check. No sign-up, nothing is sent anywhere — it all runs in your browser.

1 Match each word to its meaning.

prescription Match for prescription
dose Match for dose
allergy Match for allergy
recover Match for recover

Show answer

prescription → a doctor's written order for medicine
dose → the amount of medicine to take
allergy → a bad reaction to a food or substance
recover → to get well again

Linking a word to its meaning helps you recall it faster.

2 Use the illness pattern: I ____ a cough and a fever.

Hint: illnesses take this verb

Show answer

have — English says 'have a cough / a fever'.

3 Booking: I'd like to make an ____ to see the doctor.

Hint: a fixed time to see someone

Show answer

appointment — You 'make an appointment' to see a doctor.

4 Which sentence is natural English? I have pain in my head. I have a headache. My head is paining. I am headache.

Show answer

I have a headache. — For an everyday ache, use 'have a headache'.

5 Where do you collect prescription medicine? the pharmacy the bakery the library the garage

Show answer

the pharmacy — A pharmacy (chemist) prepares and sells medicine.

6 Put the label in order.

Show answer

take one tablet twice a day — Standard label: take one tablet twice a day.

Quiz

Previous set: English Academic Vocabulary
Related set: English Body & Health Vocabulary, English Emotions Vocabulary
Grammar for the doctor’s: Modals for advice (should), Modals: have to, Present perfect: just, yet
New here? Start with Start Learning English Here

English Medical & Pharmacy Vocabulary

By the end of this page you can…

How this list was chosen

People and places

Symptoms and how you feel

Treatment and getting better

At the pharmacy

Example sentences

Recap cheat-sheet

Practice

Medical and pharmacy practice

Quiz

Medical and pharmacy quiz

Next

All English vocabulary topics

Vocabulary