The following chart presents the parts of the body in Spanish. This will come in handy when patients speak about where they are experiencing pain or discomfort in order to seek your advice about the proper treatment.
| English | Spanish | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| abdomen | el abdomen | ale ab-doe-main |
| tonsils | las amígdalas | lahs ah-meeg-dah-lahs |
| anus | el ano | ale ah-no |
| mouth | la boca | la boh-kah |
| arm | el brazo | ale bra-so |
| head | la cabeza | la kah-bay-sah |
| hip | la cadera | la kah-day-rah |
| face | la cara | la kah-rah |
| elbow | el codo | ale koh-doe |
| heart | el corazón | ale koh-rah-soan |
| rib | la costilla | la koh-stee-yah |
| neck | el cuello | ale k'way-yo |
| scalp | el cuero cabelludo | ale k'way-row kah-bay-you-doe |
| finger | el dedo | ale day-doe |
| toe | el dedo del pie | ale day-doe dale pee-ay |
| tooth | el diente | ale dee-ain-tay |
| gums | las encías | lahs ain-see-ahs |
| back | la espalda | la ace-pall-dah |
| shin | la espinilla (de la pierna) | la ace-pee-nee-ya (day la pee-air-nah) |
| stomach | el estómago | ale ace-toe-ma-go |
| forehead | la frente | la frain-tay |
| throat | la garganta | la gar-gahn-tah |
| liver | el hígado | ale ee-gah-doe |
| shoulder | el hombro | ale oam-bro |
| groin | la ingle | lah een-glay |
| lip | el labio | ale la-bee-oh |
| tongue | la lengua | la lane-g'wah |
| hand | la mano | la mah-no |
| cheek(s) | la(s) mejilla(s) | la(hs) may-he-yahs |
| molar | la muela | la m'way-lah |
| wrist | la muñeca | la moon-yay-kah |
| thigh | el muslo | ale moose-lo |
| buttocks |
las nalgas las posaderas las asentaderas |
lahs nall-gahs lahs poe-sah-day-rahs lahs ah-sane-tah-day-rahs) |
| nose | la nariz | la nah-reece |
| nostrils | las narices | lahs nah-reece-sace |
| inner ear | el oído | ale oh-ee-doe |
| eye(s) | el(los) ojo(s) | ale oh-ho |
| outer ear | la oreja | la oh-ray-ha |
| calf | la pantorrilla | la pahn-toe-ree-yah |
| chest | el pecho | ale pay-choh |
| penis | el pene | ale pay-nay |
| foot | el pie | ale pee-ay |
| skin | la piel | la pee-ale |
| leg | la pierna | la pee-air-nah |
| lung | el pulmón / los pulmones | ale pool-moan / lohs pool-moe-nace |
| rectum | el recto | ale rake-toe |
| kidney | el riñón | ale reen-yone |
| knee | la rodilla | la row-dee-yah |
| breast(s) |
el/los seno(s) la(s) mama(s) la(s) teta(s) |
ale/lohs say-no(hs) la(hs) mah-mah(s) la(hs) tay-tahs |
| testicles | los testículos | lohs tace-tee-koo-lohs |
| ankle | el tobillo | ale toe-be-yo |
| urethra | la uretra | la oo-ray-trah |
| vagina | la vagina | la bah-he-nah |
| bladder | la vejiga | la bay-he-gah |
| abdomen (lower) | el vientre | ale be-ain-tray |
| left | izquierdo/a | ee-ski-air-doe / dah |
| right | derecho/a | day-ray-choh / chah |
[MUSIC PLAYING] [SPEAKING SPANISH]. Let's practice. For this activity, you will see a drawing of the human body. Your job is to identify the body parts. You'll have a nice word bank of those body parts, and you're going to simply label the body. You can pause and take time to do this. The numbering is to help you so that you don't have to recreate the drawing. You'll just number your paper 1 through 20, or you can do this in a little notes app, or you can do it mentally if your memory is good enough. And you can simply jot down or type out what each body part is. Take all the time you need and when you're ready, you can listen to me give you the correct answers. So you can go ahead and press pause now.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
[SPEAKING SPANISH]
The external part
[SPEAKING SPANISH]
We use our [SPEAKING SPANISH] to give an [SPEAKING SPANISH], a hug.
[SPEAKING SPANISH]
[MUSIC PLAYING]
| English | Spanish | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Is it in one location only? | ¿Lo siente solamente en un lugar? | lo see-ain-tay so-lah-main-tay ain oon loo-gahr |
| Does it radiate elsewhere? | ¿Se irradia a otros lugares? | say ee-rah-dee-ah ah oh-trohs loo-gah-race |
| Yes. | Sí. | This is a patient response. |
| No. | No. | This is a patient response. |
| It hurts here. | Me duele aquí. | This is a patient response. |
| Yes, it only hurts here. | Sí, sólo me duele aquí. | This is a patient response. |
| Yes, it hurts here, too. | Sí, me duele aquí, también. | This is a patient response. |
| It hurts more here. | Me duele más aquí. | This is a patient response. |
| It hurts less here. | Me duele menos aquí. | This is a patient response. |
[MUSIC PLAYING] Radiation. La Radiacion del Delor. Does it hurt you? Le duele? You would ask this when referring to a singular body part, like le duele la cabeza? Does your head hurt you?
Whereas, if you're asking about more than one body part, it would be, Le duelen, for example. Le duelen los pulmones? Do your lungs hurt you? Do they hurt you? Notice that the verb is not conjugated for the person, but rather for the body parts.
Because the body parts are the subject. So does your head hurt you? Do your lungs hurt you?
So the patient response would be either me duele, it hurts me, or me duelen, they hurt me. You could also ask, Tiene delor de? Do you have pain in or pain of? If you ask this phrase, you do not need to worry about changing the verb because it would be the same for singular and plural body parts.
Tiene dolor de cabeza? Tiene dolor de los pulmones? And the patient's response would be, Tengo dolor de. And then followed by a body part.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
| English | Spanish | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Does ____ hurt you? | ¿Le duele ____? | lay d’way-lay... |
| Do ____ hurt you? | ¿Le duelen ____? | lay d’way-lane... |
| ____ hurts me. | Me duele ____. | This is a patient response. |
| ____ hurt me. | Me duelen ____. | This is a patient response. |
Note that the last four phrases above are reverse construction sentences. The verbs duele (it hurts) and duelen (they hurt) agree with the subject, which follows. The "me" is not "I," but rather "me."
EXAMPLE
"Me duele la garganta" means "My throat hurts me," while "Me duelen los dedos" means "My fingers hurt me."You could also ask, ¿Tiene dolor de ____? and fill in the blank with one of the body parts listed above. This means, Do you have pain in your ____? The patient may then respond, Tengo dolor de ____, meaning I have pain in my ____.
If you are struggling with a concept or terminology in the course, you may contact SpanishforNursesSupport@capella.edu for assistance.
If you are having technical issues, please contact learningcoach@sophia.org.
Source: This content has been adapted from "Spanish for Nurses" by Stephanie Langston.
