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B2 vocabulary: health and fitness

B2 health vocabulary covers illness, healthy habits, diet and exercise, with collocations such as catch a cold, keep fit and a balanced diet. This page is part of our B2 vocabulary guide and gives you 48 items with original examples, false friends like constipated and sensible, and exam-style practice.

By Eleanor BennettLast updated:

Why health vocabulary is worth learning

Health and fitness is a topic you can talk about from personal experience, which makes it ideal for the Speaking test. It also appears in reading texts about sports science, in listening extracts with athletes or doctors, and in articles and essays about diet, sleep and exercise. It is also a topic full of false friends, so careful learning here saves you from some embarrassing mistakes.

Work through the groups below and say each example aloud. Then continue with relationships vocabulary for wellbeing and stress, and technology vocabulary for screen time and fitness apps.

Health and fitness vocabulary: words and collocations

Use it to…Phrases
Nouns: illness and treatment
  • illness / disease – an illness is the state of being ill; a disease is a specific medical condition. Heart disease is common in many countries.
  • symptom – A sore throat is often the first symptom of a cold.
  • injury – damage to the body from an accident. a knee injury
  • treatment / cure – There's no cure for the common cold, only treatment for the symptoms.
  • prescription – a doctor's written order for medicine.
  • GP (general practitioner) (British) – your family doctor.
  • surgery – an operation, or in British English the place where a GP works.
  • allergy – I have an allergy to nuts.
  • wellbeing – general health and happiness. Exercise is good for your mental wellbeing.
  • lifestyle – A sedentary lifestyle increases health risks.
Verbs and verb collocations
  • catch a cold / the flu – I caught a cold after the match in the rain.
  • have a temperature / a headache / a sore throat – She has a high temperature.
  • hurt / injure / break (your leg) – He injured his shoulder playing rugby.
  • recover from – It took me two weeks to recover from the flu.
  • keep fit / stay in shape – I swim twice a week to keep fit.
  • go on a diet – I'm not going on a diet; I'm just eating more vegetables.
  • do exercise / take exercise – Doctors recommend doing some exercise every day.
  • go for a run / a swim – Let's go for a run before breakfast.
  • make an appointment (with) – I've made an appointment with the dentist.
  • prescribe (medicine) – The doctor prescribed some antibiotics.
Phrasal verbs
  • work out – exercise, especially at a gym. She works out four times a week.
  • warm up / cool down – Always warm up before you start running.
  • get over – recover from. It took him ages to get over the virus.
  • come down with – start to have an illness. I think I'm coming down with something.
  • cut out – stop eating or doing completely. I've cut out sugary drinks.
  • take up – start a sport or hobby. My dad took up cycling at fifty.
  • pass out – become unconscious. He passed out in the heat.
  • give up – stop a habit. She gave up smoking last year.
Adjectives and word families
  • health → healthy → healthily / unhealthy – a healthy diet, eat healthily
  • fit → fitness – Fitness is not just about strength.
  • balanced (diet) – A balanced diet includes plenty of fruit and vegetables.
  • active / sedentary – Office workers often have sedentary jobs.
  • overweight / underweight – neutral, more polite than fat or thin.
  • exhausted / worn out – very tired. I was worn out after the hike.
  • painful → pain → painless – The injection was quick and painless.
  • nutrition → nutritious – Lentils are cheap and nutritious.
  • stress → stressful → stressed (out) – Exams make me stressed out.
  • infect → infection → infectious – Flu is highly infectious.
Useful phrases for discussing health
  • prevention is better than cure – it's better to avoid a problem than solve it later.
  • junk food / processed food – Junk food is cheap, which is part of the problem.
  • get enough sleep – Teenagers often don't get enough sleep.
  • in good / poor health – My grandmother is ninety and in excellent health.
  • be under the weather (informal) – feel a little ill.
  • be good / bad for you – Too much salt is bad for you.
  • a healthy work-life balance – Stress is reduced by a healthy work-life balance.
  • mental health – Schools should talk more openly about mental health.
  • a regular check-up – a routine visit to a doctor or dentist.
  • push yourself (too hard) – Don't push yourself too hard when you start running.

False friends and confusing pairs in health vocabulary

  • Trap: I'm constipated, I've got a runny nose. (Spanish estar constipado)

    Fix: In English constipated means you can't go to the toilet. Say I've got a cold.

  • Trap: I'm embarrassed, the baby is due in May. (Spanish embarazada)

    Fix: Pregnant = expecting a baby. Embarrassed = feeling silly or ashamed.

  • Trap: My skin is very sensible to the sun. (Spanish sensible, Italian sensibile, German sensibel)

    Fix: Say sensitive. Sensible means practical and reasonable: a sensible decision.

  • Trap: The doctor gave me a recipe for antibiotics. (Spanish receta, Italian ricetta, Polish recepta, German Rezept)

    Fix: From a doctor you get a prescription. A recipe tells you how to cook something; a receipt proves you paid.

  • Trap: I practise sport every day. (Spanish practicar, Italian praticare)

    Fix: Say do sport / do exercise, or name it: I play football; I go swimming.

  • Trap: I went to the medic. (Italian medico, Spanish médico)

    Fix: Say the doctor. Medic is informal and usually means a soldier or student doctor.

  • Trap: I hurt in the leg yesterday.

    Fix: Hurt takes an object for the body part: I hurt my leg. Or: My leg hurts. Use injure for more serious damage.

  • Trap: She's very physic. / He's a physician (meaning he studies physics)

    Fix: Physical is the adjective (physical activity). A physician is a doctor; a physicist studies physics.

Use it in the exam: Speaking Part 4

Health questions in Speaking Part 4 often ask about responsibility (should the government tell people what to eat?) or about modern lifestyles. Use the collocations below to give precise reasons, and remember to give an example. See the Part 4 question bank for more questions.

Sample Part 4 answer: health and fitness

Examiner: Why do you think many people find it hard to keep fit these days?

I think the main reason is that most of us have quite sedentary lifestyles. People sit at a desk all day, then sit on a bus, then sit in front of a screen in the evening. On top of that, junk food is cheap and quick, so when you're exhausted after work it's tempting to eat badly instead of cooking something nutritious. My cousin solved this by cycling to work, so she does exercise without having to find extra time. So I suppose the key is to build activity into your routine rather than relying on willpower.

Why it works

  • Gives one main reason clearly, then adds a second ('On top of that…').
  • Uses collocations from this page: sedentary lifestyles, junk food, exhausted, nutritious, does exercise.
  • Includes a short example of a solution.
  • Concludes with a general point ('the key is to…').

Health and fitness questions for speaking practice

Answer each question aloud for 30 to 45 seconds. Try to use one phrasal verb from this page in each answer.

Health and fitness

  • Should schools offer more PE lessons? Why (not)?
  • Is it the government's job to make people eat more healthily?
  • Do you think fitness apps really help people get fit?
  • Why is mental health discussed more today than in the past?
  • Is it better to exercise alone or with other people?
  • Should junk food adverts be banned on TV and online?
  • How important is sleep compared with diet and exercise?

B2 health vocabulary: FAQ

What is the difference between 'illness' and 'disease'?

They overlap. Illness is the general state of being ill, often for a short time. Disease usually names a specific medical condition, often serious or infectious: heart disease, a rare disease.

Is it 'do sport' or 'practise sport'?

Say do sport or do exercise, or name the activity: play tennis, go running, do yoga. 'Practise' means to repeat something to get better at it.

What's the difference between 'hurt', 'injure' and 'wound'?

Hurt is general and can be physical or emotional. Injure is for accidents and sport. Wound is for damage from a weapon, such as a knife.

How do I describe a minor illness in the Speaking test?

Use natural collocations: I've got a cold, I had a sore throat, I was coming down with something, I felt a bit under the weather. These sound much more natural than 'I was sick'.

Which health words come up in word formation?

Look at health/healthy/unhealthily, fit/fitness, pain/painful/painless, nutrition/nutritious, infect/infection/infectious and recover/recovery.