By Topic
Body & Health Spelling Words
Health words are essential for everyday life and exams! From ‘medicine’ to ‘diarrhoea’, ‘exercise’ to ‘prescription’ — these medical and body words have tricky Latin and Greek origins that make them hard to spell.
This page covers 50 body and health words that Indian students commonly misspell. Many come from Greek (psycho=mind, derm=skin) and Latin (corpus=body). Learn the roots and you’ll spell them all!
🏥 Common Health Words
1
medicinemedcine ✗⭐⭐
MED-ih-sin
Treatment drug
💡 MEDI + CINE
“Take your medicine.”
2
exerciseexersize ✗⭐⭐
EK-sur-syze
Physical activity
💡 EXER + CISE (not SIZE!)
“Daily exercise.”
3
diarrhoeadiarhea ✗⭐⭐⭐
dy-uh-REE-uh
Stomach illness
💡 DIA + RRHOEA (British! 2R+H!)
“He had diarrhoea.”
4
prescriptionperscription ✗⭐⭐
prih-SKRIP-shun
Doctor’s medicine order
💡 PRE + SCRIPT + ION (not PER!)
“A doctor’s prescription.”
5
pharmacyfarmacy ✗⭐⭐
FAR-muh-see
Medicine shop
💡 PH = F! PHARMACY
“Buy from the pharmacy.”
6
stomachstomack ✗⭐⭐
STUM-uk
Digestive organ
💡 STOMACH — CH = K!
“My stomach hurts.”
7
symptomsimptom ✗⭐⭐
SIMP-tum
Sign of illness
💡 SYMP + TOM (Y not I!)
“Fever is a symptom.”
8
diseasedesease ✗⭐⭐
dih-ZEEZ
An illness
💡 DIS + EASE
“A common disease.”
9
treatmenttreatmant ✗⭐
TREET-munt
Medical care
💡 TREAT + MENT
“Effective treatment.”
10
hospitalhospitel ✗⭐
HOS-pih-tul
Medical facility
💡 HOSPIT + AL
“Rush to hospital.”
🦴 Body Parts — Tricky Spelling
11
musclemusle ✗⭐⭐
MUS-ul
Body tissue
💡 C is silent! MUSCLE
“Strong muscles.”
12
shouldersholder ✗⭐⭐
SHOHL-der
Upper arm joint
💡 SHOULD + ER (OU inside!)
“Shoulder pain.”
13
tonguetounge ✗⭐⭐
TUNG
Mouth organ
💡 TONGUE — UE silent!
“Stick out your tongue.”
14
kneenee ✗⭐⭐
NEE
Leg joint
💡 K is silent! KNEE
“Scraped my knee.”
15
thumbthum ✗⭐⭐
THUM
Short finger
💡 B is silent! THUMB
“Thumbs up!”
16
wristrist ✗⭐⭐
RIST
Hand joint
💡 W is silent! WRIST
“A wrist watch.”
17
thoraxthoracks ✗⭐⭐
THOR-aks
Chest area
💡 THORAX — no CK!
“The thorax protects organs.”
18
skeletonskeleten ✗⭐⭐
SKEL-ih-tun
Bone structure
💡 SKELET + ON
“The human skeleton.”
19
diaphragmdiafram ✗⭐⭐⭐
DY-uh-fram
Breathing muscle
💡 DIA + PHRAGM (PH=F!)
“The diaphragm helps breathing.”
20
oesophagusesophagus ✗⭐⭐⭐
ih-SOF-uh-gus
Food pipe
💡 British: OESOPHAGUS (OE start!)
“Food passes through the oesophagus.”
🤒 Medical Conditions
21
pneumonianeumonia ✗⭐⭐⭐
noo-MOH-nyuh
Lung infection
💡 P is silent! PNEUMONIA
“Recovering from pneumonia.”
22
asthmaathsma ✗⭐⭐
AZ-muh
Breathing difficulty
💡 ASTHMA — TH inside!
“She has asthma.”
23
diabetesdiabeties ✗⭐⭐
dy-uh-BEE-teez
Sugar disease
💡 DIABET + ES
“Managing diabetes.”
24
allergyalergy ✗⭐⭐
AL-ur-jee
Bad reaction
💡 2L: aLLergy
“A peanut allergy.”
25
anaemiaanemia ✗⭐⭐
uh-NEE-mee-uh
Low blood cells
💡 British: ANAEMIA (AE!)
“Iron deficiency anaemia.”
26
migrainemegraine ✗⭐⭐
MY-grayn
Severe headache
💡 MI + GRAINE (not ME!)
“A terrible migraine.”
27
arthritisathritis ✗⭐⭐
ar-THRY-tis
Joint inflammation
💡 ARTHR + ITIS
“Arthritis causes pain.”
28
cholesterolcolesterol ✗⭐⭐
kuh-LES-tuh-rol
Blood fat
💡 CH = K! CHOLESTEROL
“High cholesterol.”
29
haemorrhagehemorage ✗⭐⭐⭐
HEM-uh-rij
Severe bleeding
💡 HAEMO + RRHAGE (British!)
“A medical emergency.”
30
vaccinevacine ✗⭐⭐
vak-SEEN
Disease prevention shot
💡 2C: vaCCine
“Get vaccinated.”
🧼 Hygiene & Wellness Words
31
hygienehygine ✗⭐⭐
HY-jeen
Cleanliness
💡 HYGI + ENE
“Good hygiene prevents disease.”
32
nutritionnutrision ✗⭐⭐
noo-TRISH-un
Food/nourishment
💡 NUTRIT + ION (not SION!)
“Good nutrition matters.”
33
vitaminvitamen ✗⭐⭐
VY-tuh-min
Essential nutrient
💡 VITA + MIN
“Vitamin C in oranges.”
34
proteinprotien ✗⭐⭐
PROH-teen
Body-building nutrient
💡 PROT + EIN (EI not IE!)
“Eat more protein.”
35
calciumcalceum ✗⭐⭐
KAL-see-um
Bone mineral
💡 CALCI + UM
“Milk has calcium.”
36
antibioticantibiodic ✗⭐⭐
an-tih-by-OT-ik
Bacteria-fighting drug
💡 ANTI + BIOT + IC
“Complete the antibiotic course.”
37
ambulanceambulence ✗⭐⭐
AM-byoo-lunss
Emergency vehicle
💡 AMBUL + ANCE (not ENCE!)
“Call an ambulance!”
38
thermometerthermometre ✗⭐⭐
thur-MOM-ih-ter
Temperature device
💡 THERMO + METER
“Check with a thermometer.”
39
stethoscopestethascope ✗⭐⭐
STETH-uh-skohp
Heart-listening device
💡 STETHO + SCOPE
“The doctor’s stethoscope.”
40
consciousconcious ✗⭐⭐
KON-shus
Awake/aware
💡 CONSCI + OUS (SCI inside!)
“The patient is conscious.”
💪 Fitness & Body Words
41
physicalphisical ✗⭐⭐
FIZ-ih-kul
Relating to body
💡 PH = F! PHYSICAL
“Physical fitness.”
42
gymnasiumgymnaseum ✗⭐⭐
jim-NAY-zee-um
Sports hall
💡 GYMNASI + UM
“Exercise in the gymnasium.”
43
athleteathelete ✗⭐⭐
ATH-leet
Sportsperson
💡 ATHL + ETE (not ATHEL!)
“A talented athlete.”
44
strengthstrenth ✗⭐⭐
STRENGTH
Physical power
💡 STRENG + TH (G before TH!)
“Build your strength.”
45
posturepostcher ✗⭐⭐
POS-chur
Body position
💡 POST + URE
“Good posture matters.”
46
flexibilityflexability ✗⭐⭐
flek-sih-BIL-ih-tee
Ability to bend
💡 FLEXIBIL + ITY
“Yoga improves flexibility.”
47
enduranceendurence ✗⭐⭐
en-DYOOR-unss
Stamina
💡 ENDUR + ANCE
“Build endurance.”
48
adrenalineadrenalin ✗⭐⭐
uh-DREN-uh-lin
Excitement hormone
💡 ADRENALINE — E at end (British!)
“Adrenaline rush!”
49
rehabilitationrehabilitasion ✗⭐⭐⭐
ree-huh-bil-ih-TAY-shun
Recovery process
💡 RE + HABILIT + ATION
“Injury rehabilitation.”
50
cardiovascularcardio vascular ✗⭐⭐
kar-dee-oh-VAS-kyoo-lur
Heart & blood related
💡 CARDIO + VASCULAR (1 word!)
“Cardiovascular exercise.”
📐 5 Spelling Rules
Break Long Words Into Parts
Long topic words are easy when split: ex+er+cise, gym+nas+tics, tech+no+logy.
✅ exercise, gymnastics, technology, temperature
Greek/Latin Roots Are Clues
BIOL=life, THERM=heat, GRAPH=write, PHON=sound, CHRON=time.
✅ biology, thermometer, photograph, telephone, chronology
PH = F in Science/Medical Words
From Greek: pharmacy, physical, phenomenon, chlorophyll.
✅ pharmacy, physical, phenomenon, chlorophyll, phone
Don’t Skip Syllables When Writing
Say every part: tem-per-a-ture, com-pet-i-tion, in-de-pen-dent.
✅ temperature, competition, independent, comfortable
Topic Word Lists = Exam Gold
Review topic-specific spelling before every exam. These words appear in essays and answers!
✅ Practice 10 topic words daily before exams
🐝 Spelling Quiz
1. Which is correct?
2. Which is correct?
3. Which is correct?
4. Which is correct?
5. Which is correct?
6. Which is correct?
7. Which is correct?
8. Which is correct?
9. Which is correct?
10. Which is correct?
🔀 Word Scramble
Unscramble the letters
CDEEIIMN
CELMSU
AEIMNNOPU
EEGHINY
ACHILPSY
✏️ Fill in Missing Letters
Type the missing letters
med_cine
mus_le
pne_monia
hyg_ene
phy_ical
❓ FAQ
Why are body & health spelling words hard to spell?
Many body & health spelling words come from Latin, Greek, or French with foreign spelling patterns. Plus, we often skip syllables in speech but must include them in writing.
How to prepare for exams?
Make a list of 20 key topic words before each exam. Write 3 times, spell aloud, use in sentences. Test with a partner.
Do word roots help?
Yes! Learning 20 common Greek/Latin roots helps spell hundreds of words. This page shows the roots for each word.
How many words should I know per topic?
50 per topic is excellent exam preparation. This page covers the most commonly tested words.
Should I practise daily?
Yes! 10 words per day, reviewed weekly. Consistent practice beats cramming every time.
🐝 All Spelling Bee Guides — 49 Topics
By Grade Level
Spelling Rules
I Before E Rule — When It Works & When I
Silent E Rule — Magic E Changes Everythi
Doubling Consonants — When to Double the
Plurals — S, ES, IES & Irregular Plurals
Suffixes — When to Drop E & When to Keep
Y to I Rule — When Y Changes to I
Prefixes — No Spelling Change!
IE vs EI — Complete Word List
-Able vs -Ible — Which Ending Is Correct
-Tion vs -Sion vs -Cian — Which Ending?