How to Describe One’s Symptoms in Chinese?

This is probably one thing foreigners dread the most whilst in China, or in any country for that matter: having health issues and having to describe their symptoms in Chinese.

Not only are we already sick and not in our right mind, but we have to use some medical vocabulary to describe what’s wrong with our health in Chinese!

It’s the same issue if we are accompanying a friend to see the doctor and they cannot speak, you are in charge of describing what’s wrong.

No time or energy to check Pleco for your symptoms in Chinese?

Fear no more, we made a list of the most common diseases and symptoms for you to learn and avoid some very stressing situations.

You’ll also learn some words about injuries and the first aid kit 👇

Health in Chinese – General Medical Terms

Health in Chinese – Illnesses & Symptoms

Health in Chinese – Common Injuries

Health in Chinese – First Aid Kit

Health in Chinese – Inside the hospital

Health in Chinese – Hospital Departments

Health in Chinese – FAQ’s

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Health in Chinese – General Medical Terms

Let’s dive right in!

If you are unwell or experiencing symptoms 症状 zhèngzhuàng of a potential illness, you become a 病人 bìng rén, a sick person.

If your condition requires you to go to the hospital 医院 yī yuàn or clinic 诊所 zhěn suǒ, you become a 患者 huàn zhě (patient).

Doctors 医生 yī shēng and nurses 护士 hù shi will take care of you so you can get back to your usual self in no time, and you’ll probably go out of your appointment with a medical prescription 处方 chǔ fāng for some medicine 药 yào.

Have you ever been to the dentist in China? Katie and Campbell from LTL Beijing did! See for yourself how it went:

Health in Chinese – Illnesses & Symptoms

First of all health in Chinese, or being healthy is 健康 jiànkāng.

You become a 病人 when you develop a 疾病 jíbìng, a disease or sickness, and start to get various symptoms 症状 zhèngzhuàng.

You probably heard a lot about viruses 病毒 bìngdú, and how contagious 传染 chuánrǎn they are.

To avoid people catching them, doctors can inoculate 接种 jiēzhòng a vaccine 疫苗 yìmiáo.

Mental health in Chinese is 精神健康 jīngshén jiànkāng

Unless we know our body very well or have experienced it before, it is always best to consult a doctor to get the appropriate treatment.

If you ever find yourself in China, having to explain your symptoms or your friend’s, here’s a list of the most common symptoms in Chinese:

Health in Chinese – Common Injuries

This is something we obviously do not wish to anyone, but it’s always good to put this vocabulary out there, in case it’s needed.

If you ever find yourself in an accident 事故 shìgù, you’ll probably suffer injuries 受伤 shòushāng.

Your injuries will hurt 疼 téng, and the pain 痛 tòng might be too much to handle, so better go to the 医院 see a 医生 and get some 药。

Health in Chinese – First Aid Kit, 急救箱 jíjiù xiāng

Helping someone in distress is already very stressful, so doing it in a foreign language is even more!

Let’s say you find someone 不省人事 bù xǐng rénshì unconscious. You first need to check their breath 呼吸 hūxī and pulse 脉搏 màibó to verify this person is still breathing and the heart still pumping.

Depending on the situation, you can go find a first aid kit 急救箱 jíjiù xiāng in the nearby shops or houses. If the situation seems serious, always ask for help.

TOP TIP – Check the emergency numbers of the country you are travelling to before your arrival. If something happens, you’ll immediately know how to ask for help.

BONUS – Stethoscope in Chinese is 听诊器 tīng zhěn qì.

Health in Chinese – The Hospital

Sometimes accidents happen, we eat something bad, catch fever, break a bone or our appendix suddenly hurts.

No matter the country you are in, you need to be hospitalised 住院 zhùyuàn and maybe even need a surgical intervention 手术 shǒushù.

Whilst you are comfortably set up in a sickroom 病房 bìngfáng, the doctor and nurses will come to examine you 检查 jiǎnchá and maybe even run some blood tests 验血 yànxiě to find out what’s wrong.

Here’s a list of tests the doctor might prescribe:

Health in Chinese – Hospital’s Departments

Unlike many countries, China doesn’t have private practices and every health issue must be checked at the hospital.

Depending on your health issue or the specialist you’d like to consult, you need to find the right department.

Chinese hospitals are generally large you can easily get lost!

In case you are going to a regular Chinese hospital and there is no English translation, here’s a list of hospital’s departments to help you navigate the place:

There we are, we hope you learned a little bit more vocabulary related to health in Chinese, especially the symptoms in Chinese, so even if you get unlucky you’ll be more relaxed explaining your situation with doctors in China.

If we missed anything, feel free to leave a comment below and we’ll add it to the list.

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