Health-care vocabulary · Topic 1 of 14

Words for How a Patient Feels & Looks

Words for How a Patient Feels & Looks — Set 1

Tap any line to see why it matters

Vocabulary · how a patient feels & looks

Words for How a Patient Feels & Looks — Set 1

Words HESI uses for how a patient feels and looks: malaise, lethargic, flaccid, febrile and impaired come up most.

01 · Most testedMalaise = a general unwell feeling

02 · Most testedLethargic = drowsy, sluggish, low energy

03 · Most testedFlaccid = limp, without muscle tone

Most-tested words

lethargic (adjective) — drowsy, sluggish, low on energy

malaise (noun) — a vague, general feeling of being unwell

febrile (adjective) — having a fever

flaccid (adjective) — limp and soft, without muscle tone

impaired (adjective) — weakened, not working as well as normal

More words

fatigue (noun) — tiredness or exhaustion that drains energy

flushed (adjective) — red or pink in the face or skin

distended (adjective) — swollen, stretched out from inside

inflamed (adjective) — red, swollen, warm and sore

pallor (noun) — unusual paleness of the skin

edema (noun) — swelling from fluid in the tissues

cyanotic (adjective) — bluish from too little oxygen

vertigo (noun) — a spinning kind of dizziness

laceration (noun) — a cut or tear in the skin

abrasion (noun) — a scrape where skin is rubbed away

audible (adjective) — loud enough to be heard

symptom (noun) — a change that points to an illness

manifestation (noun) — an outward sign that something is present

intact (adjective) — whole and undamaged

convulsive (adjective) — with sudden, uncontrolled jerking

gaping (adjective) — wide open

labored (adjective) — done with visible effort, as in breathing

In a sentence

Show 22 example sentences

lethargic: The nurse noted that the patient was lethargic and hard to wake for breakfast.

malaise: Before the rash showed up, the patient described two days of malaise.

fatigue: After weeks of poor sleep, the patient said fatigue made even climbing stairs hard.

febrile: The child was febrile, with a temperature of 102°F at the clinic.

flushed: The patient looked flushed after the long walk in the summer heat.

distended: The patient's abdomen was distended and firm the morning after surgery.

flaccid: One side of the patient's face drooped, and the arm on that side felt flaccid.

inflamed: The skin around the splinter was inflamed and warm to the touch.

pallor: The nurse noticed the patient's pallor and rechecked the blood pressure at once.

edema: By evening, edema had made the patient's ankles too puffy for regular shoes.

cyanotic: The infant's lips looked cyanotic, so the team started oxygen right away.

vertigo: The patient grabbed the rail when vertigo made the hallway seem to spin.

laceration: The patient needed six stitches to close the laceration on the chin.

abrasion: The cyclist had an abrasion on one elbow from sliding across the pavement.

audible: The wheezing was audible from the doorway, without a stethoscope.

symptom: A sore throat was the patient's first symptom of the cold.

manifestation: Hives can be one manifestation of an allergic reaction.

impaired: The patient's hearing was impaired in the right ear after the infection.

intact: The skin over the patient's hips was intact, with no sores or breaks.

convulsive: The child had a brief convulsive episode while the fever was high.

gaping: The gaping wound on the patient's shin had to be closed in surgery.

labored: The patient's breathing was labored, with the neck muscles straining at each breath.

Pearl

Malaise is the vague "I feel unwell"; lethargic is drowsy, sluggish and low on energy.

Words for How a Patient Feels & Looks — Set 2

Tap any line to see why it matters

Vocabulary · how a patient feels & looks

Words for How a Patient Feels & Looks — Set 2

More signs a nurse sees and hears: syndrome, languid, cicatrix and spasm lead the list.

01 · Most testedSyndrome = symptoms that occur together

02 · Most testedLanguid = weak, slow, lacking energy

03 · Most testedCicatrix = a scar

Most-tested words

spasm (noun) — a sudden, involuntary muscle tightening

syndrome (noun) — a set of symptoms that occur together

languid (adjective) — weak and slow, lacking energy

cicatrix (noun) — a scar left by a healed wound

More words

lesion (noun) — an area of damaged or abnormal tissue

turgid (adjective) — swollen with fluid

emaciated (adjective) — extremely thin and wasted

rigid (adjective) — stiff, unable to bend

tender (adjective) — sore when touched or pressed

sallow (adjective) — unhealthy pale or yellowish skin

sputum (noun) — mucus coughed up from the lungs

abscess (noun) — a swollen pocket of pus

hemorrhage (noun) — heavy bleeding

afebrile (adjective) — without a fever

infirm (adjective) — weak or frail from age or illness

limp (adjective) — soft and floppy, without firmness

ruddy (adjective) — reddish and healthy-looking

nausea (noun) — a sick stomach with an urge to vomit

diaphoretic (adjective) — sweating heavily

jaundiced (adjective) — yellow in the skin or eyes

tremor (noun) — an uncontrolled shaking movement

palpitation (noun) — a pounding or racing heartbeat felt

contusion (noun) — a bruise

In a sentence

Show 23 example sentences

lesion: The doctor looked closely at a small lesion on the patient's back.

spasm: A spasm in the calf woke the patient in the middle of the night.

syndrome: Dry eyes, dry mouth and joint pain together fit the pattern of one syndrome.

languid: In the heat, the patient gave only a languid wave from the bed.

turgid: The infected finger was red and turgid with trapped fluid.

emaciated: After months of illness, the patient was emaciated, with every rib showing.

rigid: The patient's neck was rigid and hurt when bent forward.

tender: The patient's lower right abdomen was tender when the nurse pressed on it.

sallow: Weeks indoors and little food had left the patient's face sallow.

sputum: The nurse sent a sample of the patient's sputum to the lab.

abscess: The dentist drained an abscess near the patient's back tooth.

hemorrhage: The team worked fast to stop the hemorrhage after the car crash.

afebrile: By the second day of treatment, the patient was afebrile.

infirm: The infirm resident needed help to walk to the dining room.

limp: The baby's arms felt limp, so the nurse checked for a response.

ruddy: Years of outdoor work had given the farmer a ruddy face.

cicatrix: A thin cicatrix ran along the patient's knee from an old surgery.

nausea: The patient felt nausea for an hour after the long bus ride.

diaphoretic: The patient was pale and diaphoretic, with sweat soaking the gown.

jaundiced: The newborn looked jaundiced, so the nurse called the provider.

tremor: The patient's hand tremor made it hard to hold a cup steady.

palpitation: The patient reported palpitations after drinking three cups of coffee.

contusion: The fall left a large contusion on the patient's thigh.

Pearl

Cicatrix is simply the formal word for a scar.

Practice this topic, then test the whole section.

Start HESI prep free

HESI and HESI A2 are registered trademarks of Elsevier. NurseSavvy is not affiliated with or endorsed by Elsevier.