Body Parts

1. Head

   Usage

   Show this at a clinic and point to your own head. A pain there is one word: "headache"

2. Hair

   Usage

   Used at a salon or barber. Hair on your head is uncountable ("my hair is short"); a single strand is "a hair"

   Grammar Note

   Uncountable when it means the hair on your head — never "my hairs"

3. Face

   Usage

   Use it to mark the treatment area at a spa, or to show a skin problem to a doctor

4. Eye

   Usage

   Point to it for pain, redness, or to ask for "eye drops"

5. Ear

   Usage

   Use it for ear trouble after a flight or a dive. Pain there is an "earache"

6. Nose

   Usage

   Point to it at a pharmacy for a blocked nose (US: stuffy nose) or a nosebleed

7. Mouth

   Usage

   Use it for pain inside the mouth. A sore there is a "mouth ulcer" in the UK, a "canker sore" in the US

8. Tooth

   Usage

   Show it at the dentist while pointing at the tooth that hurts. The pain is a "toothache"

   Grammar Note

   Irregular plural "teeth". Say "My tooth hurts"

9. Tongue

   Usage

   Use it when spicy food has burnt your tongue, or for a sore on it

10. Neck

    Usage

    Point to it at a massage shop for a stiff neck. English always separates the outside (neck) from the inside (throat)

11. Throat

    Usage

    Use it at a pharmacy or clinic. The set phrase is "I have a sore throat"

12. Shoulder

    Usage

    Point to it to ask a masseur to focus there

13. Arm

    Usage

    Use it to show where you were hurt in a fall. English never uses "hand" for the arm

14. Elbow

    Usage

    A common place for grazes — point to it after a bike or scooter spill

15. Wrist

    Usage

    Use it for a sprain or strain: "I sprained my wrist"

16. Hand

    Usage

    Use it to show an injury or the area to be treated at a nail salon. It means only the part below the wrist

17. Finger

    Usage

    Point to it for a finger injury or a ring size. The thumb is usually named separately as "thumb"

18. Fingernail

    Usage

    Use it at a nail salon, or to show a problem such as an ingrown nail. In speech "nail" alone is enough

19. Chest

    Usage

    Point to it for chest pain or tightness. This is urgent — show it early

20. Stomach

    Usage

    English uses one word for both the belly and the organ, so point to the spot for a doctor. Food trouble is "an upset stomach"; the runs is "diarrhoea" (US "diarrhea")

21. Belly

    Usage

    The casual word for the outside of your middle. A doctor or a form will use "abdomen"

22. Back

    Usage

    Use it to direct a massage or to show where the pain is

23. Lower back

    Usage

    There is no single English word for the Japanese "koshi" — say "lower back" for pain, "waist" for clothing sizes

24. Hip

    Usage

    In English the hip is the joint at the side of the pelvis, not the buttocks. Those are your "bottom" (UK) or "butt" (US, casual)

25. Leg

    Usage

    Point to it to show an injury or the area for a massage. English never uses "foot" for the whole limb

26. Knee

    Usage

    Use it when your knee hurts after long travel or a hike, or to show a fall injury

27. Foot

    Usage

    Use it to book a foot massage or to show a blister or injury

    Grammar Note

    Irregular plural "feet"

28. Ankle

    Usage

    Point to it for a sprain. The most natural phrase is "I twisted my ankle"

29. Toe

    Usage

    Use it when you have hurt one — "I stubbed my toe" is the standard phrase

30. Skin

    Usage

    Use it at a pharmacy for insect bites, sunburn, or a rash

31. Bone

    Usage

    Use it when you think something is broken — "I think it is broken" is enough

32. Blood

    Usage

    Use it for bleeding or a blood test. Your group is your "blood type"

33. Heart

    Usage

    Use it for palpitations or a long-term problem: "I have a heart condition"

34. Lung

    Usage

    Use it for a cough, shortness of breath, or asthma. Say "lungs" when you mean both

35. Intestines

    Usage

    Use it with a doctor for lasting diarrhoea or abdominal trouble. Casually people say "my gut"

    Grammar Note

    Normally used in the plural

36. Liver

    Usage

    Use it when telling a doctor about a liver condition or your medication

37. Kidney

    Usage

    Use it for a kidney condition or pain in the side of your back. A stone is "a kidney stone"

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