English Vocabulary for learners
DISEASES - ILLNESSES - SICKNESS
Medical words and terms relating to diseases, illnesses and sickness.
- Care home / Nursing home
- A place providing accommodation and care for people who are unable to look after themselves.
- Confinement
- A situation in which people are forced to stay in a place they cannot leave.
- Contagious
- Easily trasmitted by bodily contact with an infected person.
- Covid-19
- Official name given to the coronavirus disease which emerged in 2019.
- Critical condition
- State of health requiring immediate and constant medical monitoring and attention.
- Disease
- A medical disorder caused by bacteria or infection.
- Epidemic
- A disease affecting a large number of people in a particular area.
- Flatten the curve
- Slow down the rate of infection or reduce the number of people who contract the disease.
- Hand sanitiser
- Alcohol-based liquid or gel used to decrease infectious agents on the hands.
- Hazmat suit
- A whole-body garment that protects against dangerous substances.
(Hazmat = abbreviation for ‘hazardous material’).
- A whole-body garment that protects against dangerous substances.
- Illness
- A broad term meaning that you are in a poor state of heath. Can be used to refer to long and short-term ailments.
- Immune system
- A natural system that protects your body from diseases and infections.
- Infection
- An illness that is caused by bacteria or a virus.
- Intensive care
- Refers to a hospital unit where patients are given continuous monitoring or care.
- Isolation
- Being separated from other people in order to avoid contagion.
- Life-threatening
- Describes an illness or disease that is so serious that the patient's life is in danger.
- Lockdown
- A security measure taken during an emergency to prevent people from leaving or entering places.
- Mask
- A covering worn over the nose and mouth to protect against infection.
- Outbreak
- The sudden start or eruption of something (war, fire, disease…).
- Pandemic
- A disease that affects many people in a large geographical area.
- Peak
- Reach the highest level.
- Quarantine
- The isolation of people who are exposed to a contagious disease to prevent it from spreading.
- Sickness
- Less formal than ‘illness’, the word 'sickness' usually refers to short-term ailments (such as a cold or a sore throat) and/or a feeling of nausea.
- Social distancing
- Staying at home as much as possible, avoiding crowds and social gatherings, and keeping a distance of at least 1 metre between yourself and anyone else.
- Symptoms
- Signs of illness shown by changes in the body.
- Treatment
- Medical care given to a patient.
- Vaccine
- Injection of a killed microbe in order to stimulate the immune system against the microbe, thereby preventing the disease.
- Ventilator
- A machine that helps patients breathe correctly by allowing air to flow in and out of their lungs.
- Virus
- A microorganism that causes minor and major diseases.