German Vocabulary for Ailments, Medicine, and More

When you are traveling through or living in a German-speaking area, it is wise to know how to talk about medical problems in German. To help you out, explore and study some of the most common German words and phrases related to health care.

In this glossary, you will find words for medical treatments, ailments, diseases, and injuries. There is even a glossary of dental vocabulary in case you find yourself in need of a dentist and need to talk about your treatment in German.

The German Medical Glossary

Below you will find many of the German words you will need when speaking with doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals. It includes many common medical conditions and ailments and should cover the majority of your basic needs when seeking healthcare in a German-speaking country. Use it as a quick reference or study it ahead of time so you're prepared when you need to seek help.

To use the glossary, you'll find it helpful to know what a few common abbreviations mean:

Noun Genders: r (der, masc.), e (die, fem.), s (das, neu.)
Abbreviations: adj. (adjective), adv. (adverb), Br. (British), n. (noun), v. (verb), pl. (plural)

Also, you'll find a few annotations throughout the glossary. Quite often these point out a relationship to German doctors and researchers who discovered a medical condition or treatment option.

A

English	Deutsch
abscess	r Abszess
acne pimples	e Akne Pickel (pl.)
ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder)	ADS (Aufmerksamkeits-Defizit-Störung)
ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder)	ADHS (Aufmerksamkeits-Defizit und Hyperaktivitäts-Störung)
addict become addicted/an addict drug addict	r/e Süchtige süchtig werden r/e Drogensüchtige
addiction	e Sucht
AIDS AIDS victim	s AIDS e/r AIDS-Kranke(r)
allergic (to)	allergisch (gegen)
allergy	e Allergie
ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis)	e ALS (e Amyotrophe Lateralsklerose, Amyotrophische Lateralsklerose)
Lou Gehrig's disease	s Lou-Gehrig-Syndrom
Named for the famous German-American baseball player Heinrich Ludwig “Lou” Gehrig (1903–1941). The star New York Yankees player was born into a poor German immigrant family in New York City and attended college on a football scholarship. Gehrig died of the muscle-wasting disease.
Alzheimer's (disease)	e Alzheimer Krankheit
Named for the German neurologist Alois Alzheimer (1864–1915), who first identified the disease in 1906.
anesthesia/anesthesia	e Betäubung/e Narkose
anesthetic/anesthetic general anesthetic local anesthetic	s Betäubungsmittel/s Narkosemittel e Vollnarkose örtliche Betäubung
anthrax	r Milzbrand, r Anthrax
The anthrax bacillus, the cause of Milzbrand, was discovered and isolated by the German Robert Koch in 1876.
antidote (to)	s Gegengift, s Gegenmittel (gegen)
appendicitis	e Blinddarmentzündung
arteriosclerosis	e Arteriosklerose, e Arterienverkalkung
arthritis	e Arthritis, e Gelenkentzündung
aspirin	s Aspirin
In Germany and some other countries, the term Aspirin is a trademarked name. Aspirin was invented by the German firm Bayer in 1899.
asthma	s Asthma
asthmatic	asthmatisch

B

bacterium (bacteria)	e Bakterie (-n), s Bakterium (Bakteria)
bandage	s Pflaster (-)
bandage Band-Aid ®	r Verband (Verbände) s Hansaplast ®
benign	benigne (med.), gutartig
benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH, enlarging prostate)	BPH, Benigne Prostatahyperplasie
blood blood count blood poisoning blood pressure high blood pressure blood sugar blood test blood type/group blood transfusion	s Blut s Blutbild e Blutvergiftung r Blutdruck r Bluthochdruck r Blutzucker e Blutprobe e Blutgruppe e Bluttransfusion
bloody	blutig
botulism	r Botulismus
bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)	die Bovine Spongiforme Enzephalopathie, die BSE
breast cancer	r Brustkrebs
BSE, “mad cow” disease the BSE crisis	e BSE, r Rinderwahn e BSE-Krise

C

Caesarean, C section She had a (baby by) Caesarean.	r Kaiserschnitt Sie hatte einen Kaiserschnitt.
cancer	r Krebs
cancerous adj.	bösartig, krebsartig
carcinogen n.	r Krebserreger, s Karzinogen
carcinogenic adj.	krebsauslösend, krebserregend, krebserzeugend
cardiac	Herz- (prefix)
cardiac arrest	r Herzstillstand
cardiac disease	e Herzkrankheit
cardiac infarction	r Herzinfarkt
cardiologist	r Kardiologe, e Kardiologin
cardiology	e Kardiologie
cardiopulmonary	Herz-Lungen- (prefix)
cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)	e Herz-Lungen-Wiederbelebung (HLW)
carpal tunnel syndrome	s Karpaltunnelsyndrom
CAT scan, CT scan	e Computertomografie
cataract	r Katarakt, grauer Star
catheter	r Katheter
catheterize (v.)	katheterisieren
chemist, pharmacist	r Apotheker (-), e Apothekerin (-innen)
chemist's shop, pharmacy	e Apotheke (-n)
chemotherapy	e Chemotherapie
chicken pox	Windpocken (pl.)
chills	r Schüttelfrost
chlamydia	e Chlamydieninfektion, e Chlamydien-Infektion
cholera	e Cholera
chronic (adj.) a chronic disease	chronisch eine chronische Krankheit
circulatory problem	e Kreislaufstörung
The French may complain about their livers, but the number one German ailment is Kreislaufstörung.
CJD (Creuzfeldt-Jakob disease)	e CJK (die Creuzfeldt-Jakob-Krankheit)
clinic	e Klinik (-en)
clone n. clone v. cloning	r Klon klonen s Klonen
(a) cold, head cold to have a cold	eine Erkältung, r Schnupfen einen Schnupfen haben
colon cancer	r Darmkrebs
colonoscopy	e Darmspiegelung, e Koloskopie
concussion	e Gehirnerschütterung
congenital (adj.)	angeboren, kongenital
congenital defect	r Geburtsfehler
congenital disease	e kongenitale Krankheit (-en)
conjunctivitis	e Bindehautentzündung
constipation	e Verstopfung
contagion contact disease	s Contagium e Ansteckung e Ansteckungskrankheit
contagious (adj.)	ansteckend, direkt übertragbar
convulsion(s)	r Krampf (Krämpfe)
COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)	COPD (Chronisch obstruktive Lungenerkrankung)
cough	r Husten
cough syrup	r Hustensaft
CPR (see "cardiopulmonary resuscitation")	e HLW
cramp(s) stomach cramp	r Krampf (Krämpfe) r Magenkrampf
cure (for a disease)	s Heilmittel (gegen eine Krankheit)
cure (back to health)	e Heilung
cure (at spa) take a cure	e Kur eine Kur machen
cure (treatment for)	e Behandlung (für)
cure (of) (v.) cure s.o. of a disease	heilen (von) jmdn. von einer Krankheit heilen
cure-all	s Allheilmittel
cut n.	e Schnittwunde (-n)

D

dandruff, flaking skin	Schuppen (pl.)
dead	tot
death	r Tod
dental, by a dentist (see dental glossary below)	zahnärztlich
dentist	r Zahnarzt/e Zahnärztin
diabetes	e Zuckerkrankheit, r Diabetes
diabetic n.	r/e Zuckerkranke, r Diabetiker/e Diabetikerin
diabetic adj.	zuckerkrank, diabetisch
diagnosis	e Diagnose
dialysis	e Dialyse
diarrhea, diarrhoea	r Durchfall, e Diarrhöe
die v. he died of cancer she died of heart failure many people died/lost their lives	sterben, ums Leben kommen er starb an Krebs sie ist an Herzversagen gestorben viele Menschen kamen ums Leben
disease, illness contagious disease	e Krankheit (-en) ansteckende Krankheit
doctor, physician	r Arzt/e Ärztin (Ärzte/Ärztinnen)

E

ENT (ear, nose, and throat)	HNO (Hals, Nase, Ohren) pronounced HAH-EN-OH
ENT doctor/physician	r HNO-Arzt, e HNO-Ärztin
emergency in an emergency	r Notfall im Notfall
emergency room/ward	e Unfallstation
emergency services	Hilfsdienste (pl.)
environment	e Umwelt

F

fever	s Fieber
first aid administer/give first aid	erste Hilfe erste Hilfe leisten
first-aid kit	e Erste-Hilfe-Ausrüstung
first-aid kit	r Verbandkasten/r Verbandskasten
flu, influenza	e Grippe

G

gall bladder	e Galle, e Gallenblase
gall stone(s)	r Gallenstein (-e)
gastrointestinal	Magen-Darm- (in compounds)
gastrointestinal tract	r Magen-Darm-Trakt
gastroscopy	e Magenspiegelung
German measles	Röteln (pl.)
glucose	r Traubenzucker, e Glucose
glycerin(e)	s Glyzerin
gonorrhea	e Gonorrhöe, r Tripper

H

hematoma (Br.)	s Hämatom
haemorrhoid (Br.)	e Hämorrhoide
hay fever	r Heuschnupfen
headache headache tablet/pill, aspirin I have a headache.	Kopfschmerzen (pl.) e Kopfschmerztablette Ich habe Kopfschmerzen.
head nurse, senior nurse	e Oberschwester
heart attack	r Herzanfall, r Herzinfarkt
heart failure	s Herzversagen
heart pacemaker	r Herzschrittmacher
heartburn	s Sodbrennen
health	e Gesundheit
health care	e Gesundheitsfürsorge
hematoma, haematoma (Br.)	s Hämatom
hemorrhage	e Blutung
hemorrhoid hemorrhoidal ointment	e Hämorrhoide e Hämorrhoidensalbe
hepatitis	e Leberentzündung, e Hepatitis
high blood pressure	r Bluthochdruck (med. arterielle Hypertonie)
Hippocratic Oath	r hippokratische Eid, r Eid des Hippokrates
HIV HIV positive/negative	s HIV HIV-positiv/-negativ
hospital	s Krankenhaus, e Klinik, s Spital (Austria)

I

ICU (intensive care unit)	e Intensivstation
illness, disease	e Krankheit (-en)
incubator	r Brutkasten (-kästen)
infection	e Entzündung (-en), e Infektion (-en)
influenza, flu	e Grippe
injection, shot	e Spritze (-n)
innoculate, vaccinate (v.)	impfen
insulin	s Insulin
insulin shock	r Insulinschock
interaction (drugs)	e Wechselwirkung (-en), e Interaktion (-en)

J

jaundice	e Gelbsucht
Jakob-Creutzfeld disease	e Jakob-Creutzfeld-Krankheit

K

kidney(s)	e Niere (-en)
kidney failure, renal failure	s Nierenversagen
kidney machine	e künstliche Niere
kidney stone(s)	r Nierenstein (-e)

L

laxative	s Abführmittel
leukemia	r Blutkrebs, e Leukämie
life	s Leben
to lose your life, to die	ums Leben kommen
many people died/lost their lives	viele Menschen kamen ums Leben
Lou Gehrig's disease	s Lou-Gehrig-Syndrom (see "ALS")
Lyme disease transmitted by ticks	e Lyme-Borreliose (also see TBE) von Zecken übertragen

M

"mad cow" disease, BSE	r Rinderwahn, e BSE
malaria	e Malaria
measles German measles, rubella	e Masern (pl.) Röteln (pl.)
medical(ly) (adj., adv.)	medizinisch, ärztlich, Sanitäts- (in compounds)
medical corps (mil.)	e Sanitätstruppe
medical insurance	e Krankenversicherung/e Krankenkasse
medical school	medizinische Fakultät
medical student	r Medizinstudent/-studentin
medicinal (adj., adv.)	heilend, medizinisch
medicinal power(s)	e Heilkraft
medicine (in general)	e Medizin
medicine, medication	e Arznei, s Arzneimittel, s Medikament (-e)
metabolism	r Metabolismus
mono, mononucleosis	s Drüsenfieber, e Mononukleose (Pfeiffersches Drüsenfieber)
multiple sclerosis (MS)	multiple Sklerose (die)
mumps	r Mumps
muscular dystrophy	e Muskeldystrophie, r Muskelschwund

N

nurse head nurse male nurse, orderly	e Krankenschwester (-n) e Oberschwester (-n) r Krankenpfleger (-)
nursing	e Krankenpflege

O

ointment, salve	e Salbe (-n)
operate (v.)	operieren
operation	e Operation (-en)
have an operation	sich einer Operation unterziehen, operiert werden
organ	s Organ
organ bank	e Organbank
organ donation	e Organspende
organ donor	r Organspender, e Organspenderin
organ recipient	r Organempfänger, e Organempfängerin

P

pacemaker	r Herzschrittmacher
paralysis (n.)	e Lähmung, e Paralyse
paralytic (n.)	r Paralytiker, e Paralytikerin
paralyzed, paralytic (adj.)	gelähmt, paralysiert
parasite	r Parasit (-en)
Parkinson's disease	e Parkinson-Krankheit
patient	r Patient (-en), e Patientin (-nen)
pharmacy, chemist's shop	e Apotheke (-n)
pharmacist, chemist	r Apotheker (-), e Apothekerin (-nen)
physician, doctor	r Arzt/e Ärztin (Ärzte/Ärztinnen)
pill, tablet	e Pille (-n), e Tablette (-n)
pimple(s) acne	r Pickel (-) e Akne
plague	e Pest
pneumonia	e Lungenentzündung
poison (n.) antidote (to)	s Gift/ s Gegengift, s Gegenmittel (gegen)
poison (v.)	vergiften
poisoning	e Vergiftung
prescription	s Rezept
prostate (gland)	e Prostata
prostate cancer	r Prostatakrebs
psoriasis	e Schuppenflechte

Q

quack (doctor)	r Quacksalber
quack remedy	s Mittelchen, e Quacksalberkur/e Quacksalberpille
quinine	s Chinin

R

rabies	e Tollwut
rash (n.)	r Ausschlag
rehab	e Reha, e Rehabilitierung
rehab center	s Reha-Zentrum (-Zentren)
rheumatism	s Rheuma
rubella	Röteln (pl.)

S

salivary gland	e Speicheldrüse (-n)
salve, ointment	e Salbe (-n)
SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome)	s SARS (Schweres akutes Atemnotsyndrom)
scurvy	r Skorbut
sedative, tranquilizer	s Beruhigungsmittel
shot, injection	e Spritze (-n)
side effects	Nebenwirkungen (pl.)
smallpox	e Pocken (pl.)
smallpox vaccination	e Pockenimpfung
sonography	e Sonografie
sonogram	s Sonogramm (-e)
sprain	e Verstauchung
STD (sexually transmitted disease)	e Geschlechtskrankheit (-en)
stomach	r Magen
stomach ache	s Bauchweh, Magenbeschwerden (pl.)
stomach cancer	r Magenkrebs
stomach ulcer	s Magengeschwür
surgeon	r Chirurg (-en), e Chirurgin (-innen)
syphilis	e Syphilis
The German researcher Paul Ehrlich (1854–1915) discovered Salvarsans, a treatment for syphilis, in 1910. Ehrlich was also a pioneer in chemotherapy. He received the Nobel Prize for medicine in 1908.

T

tablet, pill	e Tablette (-n), e Pille (-n)
TBE (tick-borne encephalitis)	Frühsommer-Meningoenzephalitis (FSME)
A TBE/FSME vaccine is available which German doctors can give to people at risk, but it cannot be used on children under the age of 12. It is not available in the U.S. The vaccination is good for three years. The tick-borne disease is found in southern Germany and other parts of Europe, but is fairly rare.
temperature he has a temperature	e Temperatur (-en) er hat Fieber
thermal imaging	e Thermografie
thermometer	s Thermometer (-)
tissue (skin, etc.)	s Gewebe (-)
tomography CAT/CT scan, computer tomography	e Tomografie e Computertomografie
tonsilitis	e Mandelentzündung
tranquilizer, sedative	s Beruhigungsmittel
triglyceride	s Triglyzerid (Triglyzeride, pl.)
tuberculosis	e Tuberkulose
tuberculin	s Tuberkulin
typhoid fever, typhus	r Typhus

U

ulcer	s Geschwür
ulcerous (adj.)	geschwürig
urologist	r Urologe, e Urologin
urology	e Urologie

V

vaccinate (v.)	impfen
vaccination (n.) smallpox vaccination	e Impfung (-en) e Pockenimpfung
vaccine (n.)	r Impfstoff
varicose vein	e Krampfader
vasectomy	e Vasektomie
vascular	vaskulär, Gefäß- (in compounds)
vascular disease	e Gefäßkrankheit
vein	e Vene (-n), e Ader (-n)
venereal disease, VD	e Geschlechtskrankheit (-en)
virus	s Virus
virus/viral infection	e Virusinfektion
vitamin	s Vitamin
vitamin deficiency	r Vitaminmangel

W

wart	e Warze (-n)
wound (n.)	e Wunde (-n)

X

X-ray (n.)	e Röntgenaufnahme, s Röntgenbild
X-ray (v.)	durchleuchten, eine Röntgenaufnahme machen
The German word for X-rays comes from their German discoverer, Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen (1845–1923).

Y

yellow fever

s Gelbfieber

German Dental Vocabulary

When you have a dental emergency, it can be difficult to discuss your issue when you don't know the language. If you're in a German-speaking country, you will find it very useful to rely on this small glossary to help you explain to the dentist what is bothering you. It's also useful as he explains your treatment options.

Be ready to expand you "Z" vocabulary in German. The word "tooth" is der Zahn in German, so you will use it often in the dentist office.

As a reminder, here is the glossary's key to help you understand some of the abbreviations.

Noun Genders: r (der, masc.), e (die, fem.), s (das, neu.)
Abbreviations: adj. (adjective), adv. (adverb), Br. (British), n. (noun), v. (verb), pl. (plural)

English	Deutsch
amalgam (dental filling)	s Amalgam
anaesthesia/anesthesia	e Betäubung/e Narkose
anaesthetic/anesthetic general anesthetic local anesthetic	s Betäubungsmittel/s Narkosemittel e Vollnarkose örtliche Betäubung
(to) bleach, whiten (v.)	bleichen
brace(s)	e Klammer (-n), e Spange (-n), e Zahnspange (-n), e Zahnklammer (-n)
crown, cap (tooth) tooth crown	e Krone e Zahnkrone
dentist (m.)	r Zahnarzt (-ärzte) (m.), e Zahnärztin (-ärztinnen) (f.)
dental assistant, dental nurse	r Zahnarzthelfer (-, m.), e Zahnarzthelferin (-nen) (f.)
dental (adj.)	zahnärztlich
dental floss	e Zahnseide
dental hygiene, dental care	e Zahnpflege
dental technician	r Zahntechniker
denture(s) denture set false teeth	r Zahnersatz e Zahnprothese falsche Zähne, künstliche Zähne
(to) drill (v.) drill	bohren r Bohrer (-), e Bohrmaschine (-n)
fee(s) sum total of fees (on dental bill) service provided itemization of services	s Honorar (-e) Summe Honorare e Leistung e Leistungsgliederung
filling(s) (tooth) filling(s) to fill (tooth)	e Füllung (-en), e Zahnfüllung (-) e Plombe (-n) plombieren
fluoridation, fluoride treatment	e Fluoridierung
gum, gums	s Zahnfleisch
gingivitis, gum infection	e Zahnfleischentzündung
periodontology (gum treatment/care)	e Parodontologie
periodontosis (shrinking gums)	e Parodontose
plaque, tartar, calculus plaque, tartar, calculus tartar, calculus (hard coating) plaque (soft coating)	r Belag (Beläge) r Zahnbelag harter Zahnbelag weicher Zahnbelag
prophylaxis (teeth cleaning)	e Prophylaxe
removal (of plaque, tooth, etc.)	e Entfernung
root	r Wurzel
root-canal work	e Wurzelkanalbehandlung, e Zahnwurzelbehandlung
sensitive (gums, teeth, etc.) (adj.)	empfindlich
tooth (teeth) tooth surface(s)	r Zahn (Zähne) e Zahnfläche (-n)
toothache	r Zahnweh, e Zahnschmerzen (pl.)
tooth enamel	r Zahnschmelz
treatment(s)	e Behandlung (-en)

Disclaimer: This glossary is not intended to offer any medical or dental advice. It is for general information and vocabulary reference only.