Useful Medical Spanish Phrases: What Do You Need to Know?

Basic medical Spanish comes down to a few phrases: me duele aquí (it hurts here), me siento mal (I feel sick), soy alérgico or alérgica a… (I’m allergic to…), tomo este medicamento (I take this medication) and necesito un médico (I need a doctor). Use usted with doctors and nurses, and point to where it hurts.

This lesson comes from Speak Better Spanish, live one-to-one Spanish coaching for adults with Hannah, Arturo and Jacky. Rated 5.0 on Google. Get a free speaking plan →

Updated November 1, 2026

Key Takeaways

• Pain uses doler, which works like gustar: me duele la cabeza (one thing), me duelen los pies (more than one).
• Body parts take el or la, not “my”: say me duele la espalda, never me duele mi espalda.
• Doctors use usted: expect ¿Qué le pasa?, ¿Dónde le duele? and commands like siéntese and respire hondo.
• Mexico has its own words: gripa (not gripe), la presión alta, la panza, la curita and acuéstese.
• Watch the false friends: embarazada means pregnant and constipado means you have a cold.

This is a language guide, not medical advice. In an emergency in Mexico, call 911 and say ¡Es una emergencia!

What are the most useful medical phrases in Spanish?

If you learn only one short list, learn this one. These are the phrases a patient needs at a clinic, a pharmacy or an emergency room, and most of them work in any Spanish-speaking country. Need this Spanish for real appointments? An online Spanish tutor can practice these phrases with you.

For the moments that cannot wait, such as bleeding, a fall or trouble breathing, we have a second guide with emergency phrases and two full example conversations: Useful Medical Phrases in Spanish. This page stays on the core vocabulary you need as a patient. Working in public safety instead of healthcare? See our Spanish phrases for law enforcement.

How do you say “it hurts” in Spanish?

The verb is doler, and it works exactly like gustar. The thing that hurts is the subject, so the verb changes with it: me duele for one thing and me duelen for two or more. If me gusta and me gustan still trip you up, our guide to me gusta vs me gustan uses the same pattern.

• Me duele la cabeza. My head hurts.
• Me duelen los oídos. My ears hurt.
• Le duele la rodilla. His or her knee hurts. (Also the usted form: your knee hurts.)
• ¿Te duele mucho? Does it hurt a lot? (to a friend or a child)

You can also say tengo dolor de…: tengo dolor de cabeza (I have a headache), tengo dolor de estómago (I have a stomachache), tengo dolor de muelas (I have a toothache). Both forms are normal, and doctors use both.

The mistake I hear most is “me duele mi espalda.” In English you say my back, but Spanish already knows whose back it is, so it’s me duele la espalda. Once that clicks, you can describe pain anywhere on your body with one pattern.

Hannah Pinkerton, Speak Better Spanish coach

What are the body parts in Spanish you need at the doctor?

These are the body parts patients name most often. Learn them with the article, because that is how you will say them: me duele el brazo, me duele la garganta.

El oído is the inner ear, the part that aches with an infection. La oreja is the outer ear you can touch. A patient with an earache says me duele el oído.

How do you describe your symptoms in Spanish?

Most symptoms use tener (to have): tengo tos, tengo náuseas. States you are in right now use estar: estoy mareado, estoy enferma. That is the same split we explain in how to use ser and estar: you are sick right now, so it is estar, not ser.

Adjectives like mareado, resfriado and cansado change to -a when a woman is speaking about herself: estoy mareada. For how long something has been going on, desde does the work: tengo fiebre desde el lunes.

What medical questions will a doctor ask you in Spanish?

Doctors, nurses and pharmacists speak to adult patients with usted, so the questions end in -a or -e instead of the -as or -es you may know from tú. Here is what you are likely to hear, with a simple answer for each.

If a question goes by too fast, ¿Me lo puede repetir, por favor? (Can you repeat that, please?) is always fine. Nobody at a clinic expects perfect Spanish.

What will the doctor tell you to do in Spanish?

During an exam you will hear usted commands. You do not need to produce them, only recognize them:

• Siéntese, por favor. Sit down, please.
• Acuéstese aquí. Lie down here. (You may read túmbese in books from Spain; in Mexico you will hear acuéstese.)
• Respire hondo. Take a deep breath.
• Abra la boca y saque la lengua. Open your mouth and stick out your tongue.
• Le voy a tomar la presión. I’m going to take your blood pressure.
• Le voy a poner una inyección. I’m going to give you a shot.
• Le voy a recetar un medicamento. I’m going to prescribe you a medication.
• Tómelo cada ocho horas, con alimentos. Take it every eight hours, with food.

In Mexico you’ll hear doctors and nurses use little words to calm you down: una pastillita, un piquetito. It doesn’t mean the pill is tiny or the shot won’t hurt. It’s just a kind way of talking, and once you know that, it sounds friendly instead of confusing.

Arturo De León Gómez, Speak Better Spanish coach

How do you ask for medicine at a pharmacy in Spanish?

For small problems, the pharmacy is often the first stop. In Mexico, many pharmacies have a small doctor’s office next door, called a consultorio, for quick visits. These phrases cover the conversation at the counter:

• ¿Tiene algo para la tos? Do you have something for a cough?
• ¿Necesito receta para esto? Do I need a prescription for this?
• ¿Cada cuánto lo tomo? How often do I take it?
• ¿Cuántas al día? How many a day?
• ¿Me da una caja de curitas? Can I have a box of Band-Aids?
• la pastilla, la tableta, el jarabe, la pomada, las gotas: pill, tablet, syrup, ointment, drops

To ask the price, the phrases from how to say how much does it cost in Spanish work the same at a pharmacy as at a market.

How do Mexicans say medical words differently?

Many medical Spanish lists are written with Spain in mind. If you live in Mexico or see Mexican patients, these are the words you will actually hear:

In Mexico people also say el doctor or la doctora more than el médico in daily speech, and patients address a physician as doctor or doctora without a last name.

Which medical Spanish false friends should you avoid?

• Embarazada means pregnant. If you are embarrassed, say me da pena or qué vergüenza.
• Constipado means you have a cold. Constipated is estreñido or estreñida.
• Intoxicado usually means food poisoning or poisoning, not drunk.
• Una molestia is a mild discomfort: tengo una molestia en el ojo.
• Injuria is an insult. An injury is una lesión or una herida (a wound).

At the doctor, nobody expects perfect Spanish. Pointing and saying me duele aquí is a complete answer. What helps is saying it calmly, and that comes from practicing the words out loud before the day you need them.

Hannah Pinkerton, Speak Better Spanish coach

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

You do not need a medical degree to get through a doctor’s visit in Spanish. Learn me duele and me duelen, the body parts with their articles, a dozen symptoms and the usted questions you will hear, and you can explain what is wrong and understand what to do next. If you also need words for urgent moments, add how to say now in Spanish and our travel vocabulary in Spanish to your list.

Reading these phrases is one thing; answering a nurse’s questions at normal speed without freezing is another. A coach can role-play that exact visit with you, from ¿qué le pasa? to tómelo cada ocho horas, until it feels calm. Book a free Spanish Roadmap Session to plan your coaching, see how we help travelers and expats in Mexico, or read about our Spanish coaching for healthcare professionals if you work with Spanish-speaking patients.

Keep Learning Mexican Spanish Every Week

Want more practical Spanish like this, the way it is really spoken in Mexico? Join the Speak Better Spanish newsletter for a short weekly email with new phrases, videos and real-life tips.

Watch the Full Video

SPANISH FLUENCY COACHING

Reading about Spanish is the easy part. Speaking it is where we come in.

Most adults who find this page already know a lot of Spanish and still freeze in real conversations. A coach works on that freeze directly: what stops you, what you need to say, and real practice until it comes out on its own.

• A personal plan from a free roadmap call
• Live one-to-one sessions on Zoom
• The recording and notes after every session
• Email support between sessions
• Three coaches, so you hear more than one accent
• Full refund if your first session isn’t right for you

Hannah, Arturo and Jacky. Coaching since 2014, based in Monterrey, Mexico.

“You're not going to get to where you want to be using an app.”

Chester W., student since 2019

“Working with Hannah has dramatically improved my Spanish as well as my confidence in using Spanish in actual conversations.”

Cat Adams, Google review · Read every review

Book a free roadmap sessionHow coaching works

Not sure of your level? Take the free Spanish level test and bring your result to the call.

Free on Zoom, no payment details. Rated 5.0 on Google. You leave with a plan either way. See pricing