Portuguese health words: 25 terms for the doctor, pharmacy and emergencies

🇵🇹 PortugueseA225 words

When you feel unwell, the last thing you want is to search for words. This list covers the health centre, the family doctor, prescriptions, the pharmacy counter and common symptoms, written the way patients and pharmacists speak in Portugal.

Where you will use it: Health centre, pharmacy, symptoms and emergencies.

Portuguese words for health and the pharmacy — The word list

Meanings and translations are in English.

Portuguese	Meaning and example
o centro de saúde	Health centre.“Vou ao centro de saúde amanhã.”I'm going to the health centre tomorrow.
o médico de família / a médica de família	Family doctor; GP (male / female).“Quero falar com a minha médica de família.”I want to speak to my GP.
o número de utente	Health service user number.“Tem o seu número de utente consigo?”Do you have your health service user number with you?
a consulta	Medical appointment; consultation.“Tenho uma consulta esta tarde.”I have a medical appointment this afternoon.
a receita	Prescription.“Tenho uma receita para este medicamento.”I have a prescription for this medicine.
o medicamento	Medicine; medication.“Como devo tomar este medicamento?”How should I take this medicine?
as urgências	Accident and emergency department.“Fui às urgências ontem à noite.”I went to A&E last night.
a baixa médica	Medical sick leave; sick note.“Estou de baixa médica esta semana.”I'm on sick leave this week.
o enfermeiro / a enfermeira	Nurse (male / female).“A enfermeira chamou o meu nome.”The nurse called my name.
o farmacêutico / a farmacêutica	Pharmacist (male / female).“Vou pedir ajuda à farmacêutica.”I'm going to ask the pharmacist for help.
a dor	Pain; ache.“Tenho uma dor nas costas.”I've got a pain in my back.
a febre	Fever; high temperature.“Estou com febre desde ontem.”I've had a high temperature since yesterday.
a tosse	Cough.“Esta tosse não me deixa dormir.”This cough won't let me sleep.
a constipação	Cold (illness).“Estou com uma constipação.”I've got a cold.
a dor de garganta	Sore throat.“Tenho dor de garganta desde ontem.”I've had a sore throat since yesterday.
a alergia	Allergy.“Tenho alergia a este medicamento.”I'm allergic to this medicine.
a tontura	Dizziness; dizzy spell.“Senti uma tontura ao levantar-me.”I felt dizzy when I stood up.
o comprimido	Tablet; pill.“Tenho dificuldade em engolir este comprimido.”I have trouble swallowing this tablet.
o xarope	Syrup; liquid medicine.“Este xarope tem açúcar?”Does this syrup contain sugar?
a pomada	Ointment.“Como se aplica esta pomada?”How do you apply this ointment?
o penso	Dressing; plaster.“Preciso de um penso para este corte.”I need a plaster for this cut.
a dose	Dose.“Qual é a dose indicada na receita?”What dose is stated on the prescription?
em jejum	On an empty stomach; fasting.“Tenho de fazer as análises em jejum?”Do I need to fast for the tests?
as análises	Medical tests; laboratory tests.“Onde posso fazer as análises?”Where can I have the tests done?
a tensão arterial	Blood pressure.“Pode medir a minha tensão arterial?”Could you check my blood pressure?

Tips for learning Portuguese words

Learn the article with the nounWrite o comboio or a paragem, not just the noun: the article tells you the gender, and adjectives agree with it.
Listen before you speakEuropean Portuguese swallows many unstressed vowels, so words sound shorter than they look. Play the audio and repeat each example aloud.
Type the accentsIn WordNest a missing accent counts as a mistake. Typing água, não and amanhã correctly from the start saves relearning them later.

European, not Brazilian Portuguese

Portugal and Brazil share one language but differ in everyday words, pronunciation and grammar: a train is a comboio in Portugal and a trem in Brazil, and "I am eating" is estou a comer rather than estou comendo. WordNest teaches the Portugal variety — example sentences, pronunciation and AI corrections all follow Portugal's norms.

Add five or six of these words a day rather than the whole list at once, keep the example sentence on the card, and review them when they come due. WordNest schedules each word across seven growing intervals — same day, then 1, 3, 7, 14, 30 and 60 days — so the list is still with you months later. Read how spaced repetition works if you want the reasoning behind those numbers.

European vs Brazilian Portuguese: 50 everyday words that differ →How to learn European Portuguese with WordNest →

Questions about this list

Is this European or Brazilian Portuguese?

European Portuguese, as spoken in Portugal. Where Brazil uses a different word, the list gives the Portugal one — for example comboio instead of trem.

How do I practise Portuguese words for health and the pharmacy?

Start with five words, listen and say each example aloud. Then recall the Portuguese word from its English meaning and review it over several days.

How many words are in this list?

This list contains 25 words and phrases with English meanings and example sentences. It is a starting set, not a complete course.

Study these words with spaced repetition

Create a free account, choose Portuguese as a study language and add these words to your own deck.