IDIOM CONNECTION

Medical and Health Idioms and Quizzes

Medical and Health Idiom Quiz #1

Medical and Health Idioms

alive and kicking

- to be well and healthy

My aunt is ninety years old and she is very much alive and kicking.

alive and well

- to be well and healthy

The worker was alive and well after the accident.

as fit as a fiddle

- to be healthy and physically fit

My grandfather is ninety years old but he is as fit as a fiddle.

as pale as a ghost

- extremely pale

My grandfather was as pale as a ghost when he entered the hospital.

as pale as death

- extremely pale

The woman in the hospital waiting room was as pale as death.

at death's door

- very near death

The sales manager was at death's door after his heart attack.

back on one's feet

- physically healthy again

My mother is back on her feet after being sick for two weeks.

bitter pill to swallow

- an unpleasant fact that one must accept

Losing the election was a bitter pill to swallow for the candidate.

black-and-blue

- bruised, showing signs of having been physically harmed

My arm was black-and-blue after falling down the stairs.

black out

- to lose consciousness, to faint, to pass out

The football player blacked out after being hit by the other player.

break down

- to lose control of one's emotions, to have a nervous collapse

The woman broke down while the lawyer questioned her at the trial.

break out in a cold sweat

- to perspire from fever or anxiety

I usually break out in a cold sweat when I have to make a speech.

break out in (something)

- to begin showing a rash or other skin disorder

I broke out in a rash after eating the shrimp at the restaurant.

breathe one's last

- to die

The man breathed his last after a long illness.

bring (someone) around

- to restore someone to health or consciousness, to cure someone

The medical workers were able to bring the man around after the accident.

bring (someone) to

- to restore someone to consciousness after anesthesia/hypnosis/fainting

We tried hard to bring the woman to after the car accident.

bundle of nerves

- a very nervous or anxious person

The woman is a bundle of nerves after looking after her three children.

burn (oneself) out

- to become very tired and almost sick from doing something for a long time or from working too hard

After working long hours for many months the woman finally burned herself out.

catch a cold

- to get a cold

I caught a cold last week and had to miss four days of work.

catch one's death of cold

- to become very ill (with a cold/flu etc.)

The little boy was told to be careful in the rain or he would catch his death of cold.

check-up

- an examination of a patient by a doctor

I plan to have my annual check-up next week.

clean bill of health

- a report or certificate that a person or animal is healthy

My doctor gave me a clean bill of health when I visited him last month.

come down with (something)

- to become sick with something, to catch an illness

My niece came down with a cold and was unable to visit me last week.

couch doctor

- a psychoanalyst or psychiatrist who puts his patients on a couch to talk to them

The man was sent to see a couch doctor because of his many problems.

die a natural death

- to die by disease or of old age and not by an accident or by violence

My grandfather was very old and he died a natural death.

a dose of one's own medicine

- the same treatment that one gives to others (usually this has a negative meaning)

We gave the boy a dose of his own medicine after he bullied us.

draw blood

- to make someone bleed, to get blood from someone

The doctor decided to draw blood from the patient in order to check his blood sugar level.

drop dead

- to die suddenly

The bus driver dropped dead while driving the bus.

fall ill

- to become sick or ill

The man fell ill last winter and has not recovered yet.

feel fit

- to feel well and healthy

I feel fit so I plan to go for a long walk this weekend.

feel on top of the world

- to feel very healthy

I have been feeling on top of the world since I quit my job.

fill a prescription

- to get some medicine from a pharmacy (drug store) with the orders from a doctor

The man went to the drug store to fill a prescription.

flare up

- to begin again suddenly (an illness or a disease)

My mother's skin problem flared up when she started to use the new hand soap.

a flare-up

- a sudden worsening of a health condition

There was a flare-up of my father's sickness last week.

get a black eye

- to get a bruise or darkened eye after being hit or after bumping into something

The boy got a black eye when he fell in the playground.

get a charley horse

- to develop a cramp in the arm or the leg

The swimmer got a charley horse while he was swimming.

get a checkup

- to receive a physical examination from a doctor

I go to the doctor every year to get a checkup.

get over (something)

- to overcome a difficulty, to recover from an illness or shock

The woman is having trouble getting over her father`s death.

get sick

- to become ill

I got sick yesterday and did not go to the movie.

get (something) out of one's system

- to get rid of the desire to do something

I went on a short holiday so that I could get travelling out of my system.

get well

- to become well, to become healthy again

The boy was sick but now he is getting well.

give birth

- to have a baby

The woman gave birth to a baby boy last night.

go under the knife

- to have an operation in surgery

The woman went under the knife at the hospital last evening.

green around the gills

- to look sick

My colleague was looking a little green around the gills when he came to work today.

hang out one's shingle

- to open an office or business - especially in a profession

The doctor decided to hang out his shingle as soon as he finished medical school.

hard pill to swallow

- something that is unpleasant or difficult but which must be accepted

The woman's failure to get the job that she wanted was a hard pill to swallow.

It was a hard pill to swallow when the man lost his business.

Losing the game to a very weak team was a hard pill to swalow for the coach.

have a physical (examination)

- to get a medical check-up

Our company sent all the employees to have a physical last week.

have foot-in-mouth disease

- to embarrass oneself through a silly mistake

The man has foot-in-mouth disease and is always saying stupid things.

have one foot in the grave

- to be near death (usually because of old age or illness)

My uncle is very sick and has one foot in the grave.

head shrinker

- a psychiatrist

The man went to see a head shrinker after his recent problems at work.

in a family way

- pregnant, going to have a baby

Our new secretary is in a family way and plans to stop working soon.

in good shape/condition

- in good physical condition, functioning or working well

My grandfather is in very good shape.

in labor

- a woman going through childbirth

The woman was in labor for three hours.

in remission

- a disease that seems to be getting better

The cancer of my neighbor's mother has been in remission for several months.

in surgery

- undergoing surgery, doing surgery

The patient was in surgery for several hours this morning.

in the best of health

- very healthy

My father has been in the best of health for many years.

in the pink

- in very good health

My grandmother is in the pink and is doing very well.

just what the doctor ordered

- exactly what is needed or wanted

A nice hot bath was just what the doctor ordered after my long day at work.

kick a habit

- to break or stop a bad habit

The man used to smoke but he was able to kick the habit.

kink in one's neck

- a cramp in one's neck that causes pain

I woke up this morning with a kink in my neck.

lapse into a coma

- to go into a coma

The woman lapsed into a coma soon after the accident.

look the picture of health

- to be in good health, to look very healthy

My uncle looked the picture of health when I saw him last week.

nothing but skin and bones

- to be very thin or emaciated

The young man was nothing but skin and bones when he returned from the long camping trip.

nurse (someone) back to health

- to give someone care to restore him or her to good health

My mother spent several weeks with my grandmother trying to nurse her back to health.

on medication

- taking medicine for a current medical problem

The woman has been on medication for many years.

on the mend

- becoming better, becoming well, healing

My grandfather is on the mend after he broke his leg last week.

an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure

- it is easier to prevent something bad than to deal with the results

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure and I decided to stay home and rest rather than go out in the cold with my sore throat.

out cold

- unconscious, to have fainted

The patient was out cold because of the anesthesia when he entered the operating room.

out of condition

- not in good physical condition

I am out of condition and I need to exercise more.

out of shape

- not in good physical condition

My mother is out of shape and cannot walk for a long distance.

out of sorts

- not feeling well, in a bad mood

Our boss is out of sorts today so you should wait until tomorrow to speak to him.

over the worst

- recovering from an illness

The man is over the worst since his skiing accident last month.

pale around the gills

- to look sick

My colleague was looking a little pale around the gills when he came to work today.

pass away

- to die

The man's father passed away when he was 96 years old.

pass on

- to die

My grandmother passed on when she was 92 years old.

pass out

- to faint

Three teenage girls passed out at the rock concert.

pick up a cold/influenza

- to acquire an illness

The boy picked up a cold during the weekend.

picture of health

- a perfect example of health

The man is feeling very well and is the picture of health.

pull through

- to recover from a serious illness

The car accident was very bad and I do not think that the driver will pull through.

refill a prescription

- to sell a second set of medicine on a doctor's orders

I went to the pharmacy to refill a prescription for my mother.

rub salt in (someone's) wound

- to deliberately make someone's unhappiness or shame or misfortune worse

My supervisor rubbed salt in my wound when he continued to criticize me for my mistake.

run a fever/temperature

- to have a higher than normal body temperature

The girl has been running a fever this week.

The little boy is running a temperature and should stay in bed all day.

run down

- to be in poor condition

My father worked very hard last month and now he is run down.

run in the family

- to be a common family characteristic

The serious illness runs in the family of my friend.

run some tests

- to do some medical tests on a patient

The doctor decided to run some tests on the patient.

show signs of an illness

- to show indications or hints of an illness

The man was beginning to show signs of some kind of illness.

sick in bed

- to remain in bed while you are sick

My father was sick in bed for three days last week.

spit up (something) or spit (something) up

- to throw something up, to vomit something

The dog spit up the button that he had swallowed.

splitting headache

- a severe headache

I have been suffering from a splitting headache all morning.

susceptable to (something)

- to easily get some kind of illness, to likely to become sick with something

The young boy is very susceptable to getting a sore throat.

take a sick day

- to be absent from work and still receive pay

I did not feel well yesterday so I decided to take a sick day.

take a turn for the better

- to begin to improve or get well

The medical condition of my uncle has recently taken a turn for the better.

take a turn for the worse

- to become sicker

My aunt took a turn for the worse last week and she is now in the hospital.

take one's medicine

- to swallow one's medicine

The boy had to take his medicine before he went to bed.

take sick

- to become ill

The little boy took sick early last night.

take (someone's) pulse

- to measure the beats of a person's pulse

The doctor took the patient's pulse when she arrived at the hospital.

take (someone's) temperature

- to measure someone's body temperature

The nurse took my temperature when I went to the hospital yesterday.

a taste of one's own medicine

- the same treatment that one gives to others (usually this has a negative meaning)

Our boss got a taste of his own medicine when people began to treat him badly like he treats others.

throw up

- to vomit

The woman threw up after eating the bad shellfish.

under the weather

- not feeling well

My boss has been under the weather all week and has not come to work during that time.

up and about

- healthy and moving around, not sick in bed (usually this is used after an illness)

My uncle has been up and about for a couple of days since he left the hospital.

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