Everything you need to talk about the body, health and physical wellbeing naturally in English, including how to describe pain and common idioms, with exam practice.
📖 Reading time: ~9 minutes✅ Reviewed by a CELTA-qualified teacher🎯 Covers B1 to C1
Body vocabulary matters far beyond basic anatomy: it's essential for describing illness to a doctor, understanding everyday idioms, and following fitness or health-related conversations. This guide covers body vocabulary at a genuinely useful B1-C1 level, well beyond the "head, shoulders, knees and toes" basics, including how to describe pain accurately and the idioms that use body parts constantly in everyday English.
2. Head & Face
Word
Meaning / Note
forehead
the flat area above your eyebrows
eyebrow / eyelash
the hair above the eye / the hairs on the eyelid
cheek
the side of your face, below the eye
jaw
the lower part of the face that moves when you talk or chew
chin
the bottom of the face, below the mouth
temple
the flat area at the side of the forehead
nostril
one of the two openings in the nose
3. Torso & Limbs
Word
Meaning / Note
shoulder
where the arm connects to the body
elbow / wrist
the joints in the middle of the arm / between the arm and hand
chest
the front of the upper body
waist
the narrowest part of the torso
hip
the joint where the leg connects to the body
thigh / calf
the upper leg / the back of the lower leg
ankle
the joint between the leg and foot
knuckle
the joints of the fingers
💡
Limb vs limbs
"Limb" is a general word for an arm or a leg. "He injured his limb" sounds unnatural, native speakers name the specific body part instead ("he injured his arm"), "limb" is mostly used in medical or very formal contexts.
4. Internal Organs & Systems
Word
Meaning / Note
heart
pumps blood around the body
lungs
used for breathing
liver
processes toxins, including alcohol
stomach
digests food
kidneys
filter waste from the blood
muscle
tissue that allows movement
bone
the hard structure that forms the skeleton
blood vessel
a tube that carries blood around the body
5. Describing Aches, Pains & Symptoms
Describing pain accurately is genuinely useful, both for real medical situations and for exam speaking tasks.
Phrase
Meaning
I have a headache / stomachache / backache
pain in the head / stomach / back (compound word with -ache)
My throat is sore
pain when swallowing, often with a cold
I feel dizzy
a spinning, unbalanced sensation
My leg is swollen
larger than normal, often due to injury or fluid
I have a sharp/dull pain in my...
sharp = sudden and intense; dull = constant and mild
I twisted my ankle
injured a joint by turning it awkwardly
I feel nauseous
feeling like you might vomit
⚠️
Ache vs pain vs hurt
"Ache" is usually a dull, continuous discomfort (headache, backache). "Pain" is a more general, often stronger word. "Hurt" is a verb: "My leg hurts" (not "my leg is hurting" as a fixed habit, though the continuous IS used for a temporary situation: "My leg is hurting today").
6. Common Idioms With Body Parts
Idiom
Meaning
to keep an eye on something
to watch or monitor something carefully
to cost an arm and a leg
to be very expensive
to have a change of heart
to change your mind or feelings about something
to get cold feet
to become nervous about doing something you'd planned
to be all ears
to listen very attentively
to put your foot in it
to say something embarrassing or tactless by accident
1. The organ that filters waste from blood is the... (a) liver (b) kidney
2. "To become nervous about a plan" is to... (a) get cold feet (b) be all ears
3. The back of your lower leg is your... (a) calf (b) thigh
4. "I have a headache" describes pain in your... (a) head (b) throat
5. "To listen very attentively" is to be... (a) all ears (b) cold feet
Show Answers (B)
1.b 2.a 3.a 4.a 5.a
C. Error Correction (3 questions)
1. I have pain in my stomach.
2. My leg pains a lot today.
3. I have a cold in my throat.
Show Answers (C)
1. I have a stomachache. 2. My leg hurts a lot today. 3. I have a sore throat.
D. Freer Practice — Write Your Own Sentences (2 tasks)
1. Describe a time you felt unwell, using at least two vocabulary items from this page.
2. Write a sentence using one of the idioms from this guide naturally.
Show Answers (D)
Model answers will vary. Examples: 1. "Last week I had a terrible headache and felt dizzy all day." 2. "I was nervous about the interview, I almost got cold feet."
9. Mini Quiz
10. Exam Focus — Cambridge, IELTS, SELT
Exam
How This Is Tested
Sample Question
Cambridge B1 Preliminary / B2 First
Health and body vocabulary appears in Reading dialogues and Listening tasks about doctor visits.
A listening task involving a patient describing symptoms to a doctor.
IELTS Speaking & Writing
Describing health, illness or physical activity is a common Part 1/2 topic.
"Describe a time you were unwell" as a Speaking Part 2 cue card topic.
Trinity GESE/ISE (SELT)
Describing health and daily wellbeing comes up naturally in everyday conversation topics.
"How do you stay healthy?" "Have you been unwell recently?"
11. Frequently Asked Questions
"Ache" is usually dull and continuous (headache, backache); "pain" is a more general noun for discomfort; "hurt" is the verb form: "my leg hurts."
Use the compound -ache word where one exists (headache, stomachache, backache, toothache), or say "my [body part] hurts" for anywhere else.
"Sharp" pain is sudden and intense; "dull" pain is constant, mild, and less intense, both are commonly used to describe symptoms to a doctor.
Yes — idioms like "cost an arm and a leg," "keep an eye on," and "get cold feet" are used constantly in natural conversation, not just in textbooks.
"Limb" is a general, fairly formal or medical word for an arm or leg; in everyday speech, native speakers name the specific body part instead.
Yes — describing health, illness and daily wellbeing comes up naturally in everyday conversation topics at every level.
📅 Ready to Talk About Health and the Body Naturally?
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