أحتاج إلى طبيب
Aḥtāju ilā ṭabīb
I need a doctor
Usage
Used when feeling ill or in an emergency to request a doctor
Grammar Note
"Ahtaju ila" means "I need". The feminine form of doctor is "tabiba". In emergencies, also useful: "Ittasil bil-is'af" (Call an ambulance)
أشعر بألم في بطني
Ashʿuru bi-alam fī baṭnī
I have a stomachache
Usage
Used to describe a stomachache to a doctor or pharmacist
Grammar Note
"Ash'uru bi-alam fi" is the standard "I feel pain in..." pattern. Replace the body part: e.g. "fi ra'si" (in my head)
لدي حساسية من الفول السوداني
Ladayya ḥassāsiyya min al-fūl as-sūdānī
I have a peanut allergy
Usage
Used to inform restaurant staff or a doctor about a food allergy
Grammar Note
"Ladayya hasasiyya min" + food item expresses food allergy. Other examples: "al-qamh" (wheat), "al-halib" (milk), "al-mukassirat" (nuts)
أين أقرب صيدلية؟
Ayna aqrab ṣaydaliyya?
Where is the nearest pharmacy?
Usage
Used to find the nearest pharmacy when you need medicine
Grammar Note
"Aqrab" is the Arabic superlative meaning "nearest/closest". Same pattern: "aqrab mustashfa" (nearest hospital), "aqrab 'iyada" (nearest clinic)
هل لديك مسكن للألم؟
Hal ladayka musakkin lil-alam?
Do you have a painkiller?
Usage
Used at a pharmacy to ask for pain relief medicine
Grammar Note
"Hal" is the yes/no question particle placed at the start. "Musakkin" derives from s-k-n (to calm). Other useful terms: "khafid harara" (fever reducer), "mudad hayawi" (antibiotic)
لدي حرارة عالية
Ladayya ḥarāra ʿāliya
I have a high fever
Usage
Used to tell a doctor or nurse that you have a high fever
Grammar Note
Arabic adjectives agree with noun gender. "Harara" is feminine, so the adjective is "aliya" (feminine). You can add: "hararati tis'a wa-thalathin daraja" (my temperature is 39 degrees)
أحتاج إلى وصفة طبية
Aḥtāju ilā waṣfa ṭibbiyya
I need a prescription
Usage
Used when requesting a prescription from a doctor or pharmacist
Grammar Note
"Wasfa" means both "prescription" and "cooking recipe". Context or the adjective "tibbiyya" (medical) clarifies the meaning
هل تتحدث الإنجليزية؟
Hal tataḥaddathu al-inglīziyya?
Do you speak English?
Usage
Used at medical facilities to find an English-speaking staff member
Grammar Note
For a female speaker, use "tatahaddathina". "Hal yujad ahad yatahaddath al-injlizyya?" (Is there anyone who speaks English?) is also handy
أشعر بدوار
Ashʿuru bi-dawār
I feel dizzy
Usage
Used to describe dizziness or vertigo to a doctor
Grammar Note
"Ash'uru bi-" (I feel...) is the general pattern for describing symptoms. Examples: "ash'uru bi-ghathayan" (nausea), "ash'uru bi-da'f" (weakness/fatigue)
أحتاج إلى سيارة إسعاف
Aḥtāju ilā sayyārat isʿāf
I need an ambulance
Usage
Emergency phrase used to request an ambulance in a medical emergency
Grammar Note
Emergency numbers vary by Arab country: Saudi Arabia 911, UAE 998, Egypt 123. "Ittasil bil-is'af!" (Call an ambulance!) is also essential to know
أنا حامل
anā ḥāmil
I am pregnant
Usage
Show before any exam — it changes what medicine, X-ray, or anesthesia is safe. Given as a sentence because the bare word also means holder/stand
الربو
ar-rabw
Asthma
Usage
Shown to a doctor or pharmacist as a pre-existing condition
مرض السكري
maraḍ as-sukkarī
Diabetes
Usage
States diabetes as a condition; the word maraḍ (disease) is kept because as-sukkarī alone can read as sugary
ارتفاع ضغط الدم
irtifāʿ ḍaghṭ ad-dam
High blood pressure
Usage
Shown as a condition; always asked about before prescribing
مرض القلب
maraḍ al-qalb
Heart disease
Usage
Shown as a condition; it changes emergency treatment decisions
الصرع
aṣ-ṣaraʿ
Epilepsy
Usage
Warns staff in advance that a seizure is possible
تأمين صحي
taʾmīn ṣiḥḥī
Health insurance
Usage
Shown at reception when asked whether you have insurance
كسر في العظم
kasr fī al-ʿaẓm
Bone fracture
Usage
States a fracture; fī al-ʿaẓm (in the bone) is kept because kasr alone can mean a break or a discount
صعوبة في التنفس
ṣuʿūba fī at-tanaffus
Difficulty breathing
Usage
Pointed to when you are too short of breath to speak
دوار
duwār
Dizziness
Usage
Says dizziness; Egyptian and Levantine speech uses dawkha. Show it in a symptom context so it is not read as duwwār (traffic roundabout)
نزيف
nazīf
Bleeding
Usage
States that you are bleeding
حرق
ḥarq
Burn
Usage
Shown when asking for treatment of a burn
جرح
jurḥ
Wound, cut
Usage
States a cut or open wound
الأذن
al-udhun
Ear
Usage
Body-part word for pointing out where it hurts
الرقبة
ar-raqaba
Neck
Usage
Body-part word for pointing out where it hurts
الكتف
al-katif
Shoulder
Usage
Body-part word for pointing out where it hurts
الركبة
ar-rukba
Knee
Usage
Body-part word for pointing out where it hurts
الإصبع
al-iṣbaʿ
Finger, toe
Usage
Covers both fingers and toes — point at your own body to make clear which
الجلد
al-jild
Skin
Usage
For skin symptoms; the same spelling also means leather, so point at your body while showing it
الذراع
adh-dhirāʿ
Arm
Usage
Body-part word for pointing out where it hurts
الأنف
al-anf
Nose
Usage
Body-part word for pointing out where it hurts
سعال
suʿāl
Cough
Usage
States a cough; also used at the pharmacy
حكة
ḥikka
Itching
Usage
States that something itches
طفح جلدي
ṭafḥ jildī
Rash
Usage
Reports a rash on the skin
إمساك
imsāk
Constipation
Usage
Also used when asking a pharmacy for a remedy; the same spelling is the Ramadan fast-start time, so show it in a symptom context
الدورة الشهرية
ad-dawra ash-shahriyya
Menstruation, period
Usage
Arabic uses this monthly-cycle wording as the standard term both medically and in daily speech
فصيلة الدم
faṣīlat ad-dam
Blood type
Usage
Shown when giving your blood group before transport or a transfusion
شهادة طبية
shahāda ṭibbiyya
Medical certificate
Usage
Ask for the doctor's certificate needed for an insurance claim or a ticket change
دخول المستشفى
dukhūl al-mustashfā
Hospital admission
Usage
Use it to check whether you are being admitted; discharge is al-khurūj min al-mustashfā
نافض
nāfiḍ
Chills
Usage
The medical term for the cold shivering that comes with a fever; everyday speech more often says qushaʿrīra
زكام
zukām
Common cold
Usage
Shown at a pharmacy when asking for cold medicine; influenza is the separate word influwanzā
هل أحتاج إلى راحة؟
Hal aḥtāju ilā rāḥa?
Do I need to rest?
Usage
Asking the doctor after an examination whether you should stay at rest or may carry on
Grammar Note
The "ahtaju ila X" frame of another card "Ahtaju ila tabib" ("I need a doctor") with "raha" (rest) filled in, turned into a yes/no question by the leading "hal", as in another card "Hal ladayka musakkin lil-alam?" and another card "Hal tatahaddathu al-ingliziyya?". Like every existing card in this file, it is written without vowel diacritics.
اتصل بالطبيب من فضلك
Ittaṣil biṭ-ṭabīb min faḍlak
Please call a doctor
Usage
Asking the people around you to call a doctor when someone has suddenly fallen ill; this is the form addressed to a man
Grammar Note
The same frame as another card "Ittasil bil-isʿaf min fadlak" ("Please call an ambulance"), with "al-isʿaf" (the ambulance service) replaced by "at-tabib" (the doctor), the same word as in another card. Every existing card in this file is written without vowel diacritics, so this one follows suit.
إسهال
ishāl
Diarrhea
Usage
Shown to a doctor or pharmacist to name the symptom
براز
barāz
Poop
Usage
The neutral Standard Arabic word for stool, understood in both medical and everyday speech. Child-level words differ by dialect and do not exist in the standard language, so this word is given
بول
bawl
Pee
Usage
The neutral Standard Arabic word for urine, understood in both medical and everyday speech. Child-level words differ by dialect and do not exist in the standard language, so this word is given
لدي إسهال
Ladayya ishāl
I have diarrhea
Usage
Used to tell a doctor or pharmacist that you have diarrhea
Grammar Note
The same "ladayya" (I have) + symptom frame as another card "لدي حرارة عالية" (I have a high fever), with the symptom replaced by "ishāl". Written without vowel diacritics, like the existing cards in this file.
لدي إمساك
Ladayya imsāk
I'm constipated
Usage
Used to tell a doctor or pharmacist that you are constipated
Grammar Note
The same "ladayya" + symptom frame as another card "لدي حرارة عالية", with the symptom replaced by "imsāk" from another card.
أريد أن أتبول
Urīdu an atabawwala
I need to pee
Usage
The Standard Arabic way to tell a companion or child that you need to pee; spoken dialects each have their own wording
Grammar Note
"Urīdu an" + a first-person subjunctive verb. The verb "تبول" is Form V, "to urinate". Written without vowel diacritics.
أريد أن أتغوط
Urīdu an ataghawwaṭa
I need to poop
Usage
The Standard Arabic way to tell a companion or child that you need to poop; somewhat clinical and stiff but not vulgar. Spoken dialects each have their own wording
Grammar Note
"Urīdu an" + a first-person subjunctive verb. The verb "تغوط" is Form V, "to defecate". Written without vowel diacritics.
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