Health & Hospital

1. నాకు తలనొప్పి ఉంది

   Nāku talanoppi undi

   I have a headache

   Usage

   Used to describe a headache to a doctor or pharmacist

   Grammar Note

   Telugu uses dative subject "nāku" (to me) to express bodily conditions. "Undi" is the third-person singular of the existential verb.

2. నాకు వికారంగా ఉంది

   Nāku vikāraṃgā undi

   I feel nauseous

   Usage

   Used to describe nausea to a doctor or medical staff

   Grammar Note

   "-gā" is the adverbial suffix. "Vikāram" (discomfort/nausea) + "-gā" = "in a nauseous state". Common symptom description pattern.

3. నాకు జ్వరం ఉంది

   Nāku jvaraṃ undi

   I have a fever

   Usage

   Used to inform a doctor or others that you have a fever

   Grammar Note

   "Jvaram" from Sanskrit "jvara". Show a thermometer reading and add "degrees unnaayi" (has a temperature of __ degrees).

4. నాకు అలెర్జీ ఉంది

   Nāku alerjī undi

   I have an allergy

   Usage

   Used to inform a doctor or staff about a food or medicine allergy

   Grammar Note

   Specify the allergen: "vērushenakkāya alerjī undi" (I have a peanut allergy). Telugu doctors also understand English allergy terms.

5. దగ్గు మరియు జలుబు ఉంది

   Daggu mariyu jalubu undi

   I have a cough and a cold

   Usage

   Used to describe cold symptoms to a doctor or pharmacist

   Grammar Note

   "Mariyu" is the formal conjunction "and". In spoken Telugu, symptoms are often listed without a conjunction: "daggu, jalubu undi".

6. దగ్గరలో ఆసుపత్రి ఎక్కడ ఉంది?

   Daggaralō āsupatri ekkaḍa undi?

   Where is the nearest hospital?

   Usage

   Used to find the nearest hospital in case of emergency or illness

   Grammar Note

   "Ekkaḍa" = "where". Telugu emergency numbers: 108 (ambulance), 100 (police), 1098 (children helpline).

7. ఆంబులెన్స్ పిలవండి

   Āmbulens pilavanḍi

   Please call an ambulance

   Usage

   Used in emergencies to request an ambulance. Emergency number in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana: 108

   Grammar Note

   "-ndi" suffix marks polite imperative. Saying "108 ki phone ceyaṇḍi" (call 108) is the fastest way to get an ambulance.

8. ఇంగ్లీషు మాట్లాడే డాక్టర్ ఉన్నారా?

   Iṃglīṣu māṭlāḍē ḍākṭar unnārā?

   Is there a doctor who speaks English?

   Usage

   Used by foreign visitors at hospitals to find an English-speaking doctor

   Grammar Note

   "-rā" suffix marks polite questions. Hospitals in Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam typically have English-speaking doctors.

9. ప్రిస్క్రిప్షన్ రాసి ఇవ్వండి

   Priskripṣan rāsi ivvanḍi

   Please write a prescription

   Usage

   Politely requests a prescription from a doctor after examination

   Grammar Note

   "Rāsi ivvanḍi" is a compound verb imperative: "write and give please". "-ndi" suffix is the standard polite imperative in Telugu.

10. ఔషధశాల ఎక్కడ ఉంది?

    Auṣadhaśāla ekkaḍa undi?

    Where is the pharmacy?

    Usage

    Used to find a pharmacy when you need to buy medicine

    Grammar Note

    "Auṣadha" from Sanskrit means medicine. In colloquial speech, "medical shop ekkada undi?" (where's the medical shop?) is more common.

11. గర్భవతి

    garbhavati

    Pregnant

    Usage

    Decides what medicine, X-rays, and anaesthesia are allowed — show it before any examination or prescription

12. ఆస్తమా

    āstamā

    Asthma

    Usage

    Shown to a doctor or pharmacist as a chronic condition; this English-derived word is understood more reliably than the native ఉబ్బసం (ubbasaṃ)

13. చక్కెర వ్యాధి

    cakkera vyādhi

    Diabetes

    Usage

    Chronic condition to show a doctor; literally "sugar disease". In speech people often just say షుగర్ (sugar)

14. అధిక రక్తపోటు

    adhika raktapōṭu

    High blood pressure

    Usage

    Shown to a doctor as a chronic condition; in the clinic people often just say "BP"

15. గుండె జబ్బు

    guṇḍe jabbu

    Heart disease

    Usage

    Shown to a doctor or ambulance crew; built from everyday words guṇḍe (heart) + jabbu (illness), so anyone understands it

16. మూర్ఛ వ్యాధి

    mūrcha vyādhi

    Epilepsy

    Usage

    Tells staff you have a seizure disorder; mūrcha on its own can also just mean "fainting", so vyādhi (disease) is kept to pin the meaning down

17. వైద్య బీమా

    vaidya bīmā

    Medical insurance

    Usage

    Used at hospital reception; bīmā alone means insurance in general, so vaidya (medical) is added

18. ఎముక విరిగింది

    emuka virigindi

    The bone is broken

    Usage

    Reports a suspected fracture; Telugu has no natural noun for "a fracture", so the verb form is used. Leads to an X-ray

19. ఊపిరి ఆడటం లేదు

    ūpiri āḍaṭaṃ lēdu

    I can't breathe

    Usage

    Point at it when you are too short of breath to speak — a high-urgency symptom

20. తల తిరుగుతోంది

    tala tirugutōndi

    I feel dizzy

    Usage

    Reports light-headedness, used when discussing heat exhaustion or dehydration; literally "my head is spinning"

21. రక్తం కారుతోంది

    raktaṃ kārutōndi

    It is bleeding

    Usage

    Show while pointing at the wound; raktaṃ alone just means "blood", so the verb is kept

22. కాలిన గాయం

    kālina gāyaṃ

    Burn

    Usage

    Shown when asking for treatment of a burn; literally "burnt wound"

23. గాయం

    gāyaṃ

    Wound

    Usage

    Covers cuts, grazes, and other injuries; use it while showing the wound

24. చెవి

    cevi

    Ear

    Usage

    Body part for reporting pain — show it while pointing at your own ear

25. మెడ

    meḍa

    Neck

    Usage

    The outside of the neck; the inside of the throat is a different word, goṇtu

26. భుజం

    bhujaṃ

    Shoulder

    Usage

    For reporting shoulder pain; also useful at a massage shop

27. మోకాలు

    mōkālu

    Knee

    Usage

    For reporting knee pain

28. చేతి వేలు

    cēti vēlu

    Finger

    Usage

    Vēlu alone covers both fingers and toes, so cēti ("of the hand") pins it down; a toe is kāli vēlu

29. చర్మం

    carmaṃ

    Skin

    Usage

    Used when raising a skin problem; a dermatologist is carma vaidyuḍu

30. ముక్కు

    mukku

    Nose

    Usage

    Point at it when reporting a blocked nose or a nosebleed

31. దగ్గు

    daggu

    Cough

    Usage

    Reports a cough; showing it at a pharmacy gets you cough medicine

32. దురద

    durada

    Itch

    Usage

    Show it while pointing at the itchy spot — used for insect bites and rashes

33. దద్దుర్లు

    daddurlu

    Rash

    Usage

    Show it while displaying the rash; also used when reporting an allergic reaction

34. మలబద్ధకం

    malabaddhakaṃ

    Constipation

    Usage

    The standard word for constipation, understood at both the pharmacy and the clinic

35. నెలసరి

    nelasari

    Period (menstruation)

    Usage

    The euphemism Telugu speakers actually use, literally "the monthly one"; in cities the English "periods" is equally understood

36. రక్త వర్గం

    rakta vargaṃ

    Blood type

    Usage

    రక్తం (blood) plus వర్గం (class, category); asked before a transfusion or surgery. Write your own type in Latin letters (A, B, O, AB) to be safe

37. మెడికల్ సర్టిఫికెట్

    meḍikal sarṭiphikeṭ

    Medical certificate

    Usage

    The certificate a doctor issues, needed for insurance claims or to justify a change of plans; a direct transliteration of English "medical certificate"

38. ఆసుపత్రిలో చేరడం

    āsupatrilō cēraḍaṃ

    Hospital admission

    Usage

    ఆసుపత్రి (hospital) plus లో (in) plus చేరడం (joining); "he was hospitalised" is ఆసుపత్రిలో చేరాడు

39. వణుకు

    vaṇuku

    Chills

    Usage

    The shivering that comes with cold; an example is చలితో అతడు వణుకుతున్నాడు ("he is shivering with cold"). చలి on its own means cold weather

40. నాకు నీరసంగా ఉంది

    nāku nīrasaṃgā undi

    My body feels sluggish

    Usage

    Says your body feels weak from fever or exhaustion - not pain, so keep it separate from «నాకు తలనొప్పి ఉంది»

    Grammar Note

    The same "dative + adverbial -ga + undi" frame as «నాకు వికారంగా ఉంది» naku vikaramga undi (I feel nauseous).

41. నేను చాలా సార్లు వాంతి చేసుకున్నాను

    nēnu cālā sārlu vānti cēsukunnānu

    I have vomited several times

    Usage

    Shown at a consultation to say it has happened more than once; «నాకు వికారంగా ఉంది» covers nausea alone

    Grammar Note

    Vanti cesukonu means to vomit; sarlu is the plural of sari (time, occasion) seen in «ఇంకోసారి చెప్పండి» inkosari, and cala is the same adverb as in «కొంచెం తీసేయండి — చాలా కత్తిరించకండి.».

42. నాకు విశ్రాంతి కావాలా?

    nāku viśrānti kāvālā?

    Do I need to rest?

    Usage

    Shown after an examination to ask the doctor whether you should stay still

    Grammar Note

    The kavali of «AC గది కావాలి» AC gadi kavali with the interrogative -a attached; visranti is the same word as in «ఐదు నిమిషాలు విశ్రాంతి తీసుకో, నీళ్ళు తాగు.» visranti tisuko (take a break).

43. విరేచనాలు

    virēcanālu

    Diarrhea

    Usage

    The standard word for diarrhea, always used in the plural; it is also the word inside the anti-diarrhea request «నాకు విరేచనాలకు మందు కావాలి», and works at the clinic and the pharmacy alike

44. మలం

    malaṃ

    Poop

    Usage

    Malaṃ (stool) is the standard word, used to describe stool at a clinic. Words like peda refer to animal dung and are not used for people.

45. మూత్రం

    mūtraṃ

    Pee

    Usage

    Mūtraṃ (urine) is the widely understood standard word. The colloquial ucca sounds coarse, so it is avoided here.

46. నాకు విరేచనాలు అవుతున్నాయి

    Nāku virēcanālu avutunnāyi

    I have diarrhea

    Usage

    Used to tell a doctor or pharmacist that you have diarrhea

    Grammar Note

    "Virēcanālu" is plural, so the verb agrees as the plural "avutunnāyi", the progressive of "avu" (to happen/become), giving "diarrhea is going on"; like «నాకు తలనొప్పి ఉంది» it puts the body state with "nāku"

47. నాకు మలబద్ధకం ఉంది

    Nāku malabaddhakaṃ undi

    I'm constipated

    Usage

    Used to tell a doctor or pharmacist that you are constipated

    Grammar Note

    The same "nāku + symptom + undi" pattern as «నాకు తలనొప్పి ఉంది» "nāku talanoppi undi"; “Malabaddhakaṃ” means “constipation”.

48. నాకు మూత్రానికి వెళ్ళాలి

    Nāku mūtrāniki veḷḷāli

    I need to pee

    Usage

    Used to tell a companion or a child that you need to go and pee; asking where the toilet is belongs to other categories

    Grammar Note

    "Veḷḷāli" is the obligative of "veḷḷu" (to go); with the dative subject "nāku" it conveys urgency, "must go". "Mūtrāniki veḷḷu" is the euphemism "go for urine"

49. నాకు మలవిసర్జనకు వెళ్ళాలి

    Nāku malavisarjanaku veḷḷāli

    I need to poop

    Usage

    Used to tell a companion or child that you need to go and poop. Malavisarjana (defecation) is bookish but widely understood.

    Grammar Note

    The same "nāku + -ku + veḷḷāli" frame as «నాకు మూత్రానికి వెళ్ళాలి»; "malavisarjana" is the compound of "malaṃ" (stool) + "visarjana" (discharge). An example is “malavisarjanaku veḷḷu”

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