Illness is a common experience, and there are many expressions in English to describe it. Understanding these expressions can help you communicate more effectively about health issues. Here are 20 useful expressions related to illness, complete with meanings and example sentences.
1. Come Down With
Meaning: Start to get sick
Example: I think I’m coming down with a cold.
2. Feel Under the Weather
Meaning: Feel slightly ill
Example: She felt under the weather yesterday.
3. Catch a Bug
Meaning: Get an infectious illness
Example: He caught a bug during his trip.
4. On the Mend
Meaning: Recovering from an illness
Example: She’s on the mend after the surgery.
5. Kick the Bucket
Meaning: Die (informal)
Example: He finally kicked the bucket last night.
6. In Poor Health
Meaning: Not healthy
Example: She has been in poor health recently.
7. Run Down
Meaning: Feel tired and weak
Example: He looks run down after working so hard.
8. Black Out
Meaning: Lose consciousness
Example: She blacked out during the heatwave.
9. Take a Turn for the Worse
Meaning: Become more ill
Example: His condition took a turn for the worse.
10. Back on One’s Feet
Meaning: Fully recovered
Example: She’s back on her feet after the flu.
11. Break Out in (Something)
Meaning: Develop a rash
Example: He broke out in hives after eating nuts.
12. Come Round
Meaning: Regain consciousness
Example: She came round after fainting.
13. Out of Sorts
Meaning: Slightly ill or upset
Example: He’s feeling out of sorts today.
14. Shake Off (Something)
Meaning: Get rid of an illness
Example: She can’t shake off this cold.
15. Drop Like Flies
Meaning: Many people getting ill
Example: People at work are dropping like flies.
16. Take Ill
Meaning: Become ill suddenly
Example: He took ill at the meeting.
17. Go Down With (Something)
Meaning: Become sick with
Example: She went down with the flu last week.
18. Laid Up
Meaning: Confined to bed due to illness
Example: He’s laid up with a broken leg.
19. Pass Out
Meaning: Faint
Example: He passed out from dehydration.
20. Come Through
Meaning: Survive a serious illness
Example: She came through the surgery successfully.
