This beginner-level French lesson covers essential vocabulary and grammar to talk about sickness and pain, including symptoms, common health-related phrases, and using the near future tense with "aller." It features practical dialogues for medical visits, pharmacy requests, and phone calls, alongside vocabulary sorting and verb conjugation exercises to build natural communication skills in health contexts.

Listening & reading materials

Practice vocabulary in context with real materials.

Vocabulary (13)

 L'hôpital: The hospital (French)

L'hôpital

Show

The hospital Show

 Aller chez le médecin : Going to the doctor (French)

Aller chez le médecin

Show

Going to the doctor Show

 L'allergie: Allergy (French)

L'allergie

Show

Allergy Show

 Avoir le nez qui coule: To have a runny nose (French)

Avoir le nez qui coule

Show

To have a runny nose Show

 Avoir mal à ...: to have pain in ... (French)

Avoir mal à ...

Show

To have pain in ... Show

 Le patient: The patient (French)

Le patient

Show

The patient Show

 Le docteur: The doctor (French)

Le docteur

Show

The doctor Show

 La maladie: The illness (French)

La maladie

Show

The illness Show

 Tousser (to cough) - Verb conjugation and exercises

Tousser

Show

To cough Show

 Éternuer (to sneeze) - Verb conjugation and exercises

Éternuer

Show

To sneeze Show

 Se moucher  (to blow one's nose) - Verb conjugation and exercises

Se moucher

Show

To blow one's nose Show

 Avoir de la fièvre: To have a fever (French)

Avoir de la fièvre

Show

To have a fever Show

 Prendre un médicament: Take a medicine (French)

Prendre un médicament

Show

Take a medicine Show

Exercises

These exercises can be done together during conversation lessons or as homework.

Exercise 1: Reorder sentences

Instruction: Make correct sentences and translate.

Show answers
1.
Je vais aller chez le médecin demain parce que j'ai mal à la tête.
(I am going to the doctor tomorrow because I have a headache.)
2.
Est-ce que vous avez de la fièvre ?
(Do you have a fever?)
3.
Je ne vais pas éternuer ici, excusez-moi.
(I am not going to sneeze here, excuse me.)
4.
Nous allons prendre un médicament contre la toux.
(We are going to take medicine for the cough.)
5.
Tu as le nez qui coule ? Il faut te moucher souvent.
(Do you have a runny nose? You need to blow your nose often.)
6.
Le docteur va examiner le patient à l'hôpital.
(The doctor is going to examine the patient at the hospital.)

Exercise 2: Match a word

Instruction: Match the translations

Je vais aller chez le médecin parce que j’ai mal à la gorge. (I am going to the doctor because I have a sore throat.)
Elle a le nez qui coule et elle doit se moucher souvent. (She has a runny nose and she has to blow it often.)
Vous avez de la fièvre ? Il faut prendre un médicament. (Do you have a fever? You need to take medicine.)
Nous allons tousser si nous restons dehors sans manteau. (We will cough if we stay outside without a coat.)

Exercise 3: Cluster the words

Instruction: Classify these words into two categories: those that describe symptoms and those that refer to people or places related to the disease.

Symptômes

Personnes et lieux

Exercise 4: Translate and use in a sentence

Instruction: Pick a word, translated and use the word in a sentence or dialogue.

1

La maladie


The illness

2

Se moucher


To blow one's nose

3

L'hôpital


The hospital

4

Éternuer


To sneeze

5

Le docteur


The doctor

Exercice 5: Exercice de conversation

Instruction:

  1. Décrivez les symptômes de chaque personne. (Describe the symptoms of each person.)
  2. Jouer un dialogue chez le médecin. (Play a dialogue at the doctor's office.)

Teaching guidelines +/- 10 minutes

Example phrases:

Il a mal au cou.

He has pain in the neck.

Vous avez de la fièvre.

You have a fever.

J'ai mal au dos.

My back hurts.

Où avez-vous mal ?

Where does it hurt?

J'ai une toux.

I have a cough.

J'ai mal à la tête.

I have a headache.

J'ai mal au ventre.

I have a stomachache.

J'ai la nausée.

I feel nauseous.

...

Exercise 6: Dialogue Cards

Instruction: Select a situation and practice the conversation with your teacher or fellow students.

Exercise 7: Multiple Choice

Instruction: Choose the correct solution

1. Je ____ prendre un médicament pour la douleur.

(I ____ going to take a medicine for the pain.)

2. Tu ____ aller chez le médecin demain matin.

(You ____ going to go to the doctor tomorrow morning.)

3. Il ne ____ pas éternuer devant tout le monde.

(He is not ____ going to sneeze in front of everyone.)

4. Nous ____ nous moucher avant de partir.

(We ____ are going to blow our noses before leaving.)

Exercise 8: A Visit to the Doctor

Instruction:

Aujourd'hui, je (Aller - Présent) chez le médecin parce que j'ai mal à la gorge. Tu (Tousser - Présent) beaucoup, alors tu (Aller - Présent) prendre un médicament. Nous (Aller - Présent) à l'hôpital demain pour un contrôle. Le docteur dit que vous (Aller - Présent) vous sentir mieux bientôt.


Today, I go to the doctor because I have a sore throat. You cough a lot, so you are going to take medicine. We are going to the hospital tomorrow for a check-up. The doctor says you are going to feel better soon.

Verb Tables

Aller - Go

Présent

  • je vais
  • tu vas
  • il/elle/on va
  • nous allons
  • vous allez
  • ils/elles vont

Tousser - Cough

Présent

  • je tousse
  • tu tousses
  • il/elle/on tousse
  • nous toussons
  • vous toussez
  • ils/elles toussent

Exercise 9: Le futur proche : "Aller" + Infinitif

Instruction: Fill in the correct word.

Grammar: The near future: "Aller" + Infinitive

Show translation Show answers

vont, allez, allons, vas, va, vais

1.
Ils avoir le nez qui coule cet hiver.
(They are going to have a runny nose this winter.)
2.
Nous souffrir d'un mal de ventre.
(We are going to suffer from a stomach ache.)
3.
Je tousser bientôt.
(I am going to cough soon.)
4.
Ils se moucher.
(They are going to blow their nose.)
5.
Vous éternuer à cause de l'allergie.
(You are going to sneeze because of the allergy.)
6.
Il se reposer ce soir.
(He is going to rest this evening.)
7.
Je aller à l'hôpital.
(I am going to go to the hospital.)
8.
Tu voir le docteur.
(You are going to see the doctor.)

Don't see progress when learning on your own? Study this material with a certified teacher!

Do you want to practice French today? That is possible! Just contact one of our teachers today.

Enroll now!

Sickness and Pain: Learn to Talk About Health in French

This lesson introduces you to essential vocabulary and expressions related to sickness, pain, and visiting medical professionals in French. You'll learn how to talk about common symptoms like having a fever (avoir de la fièvre), a runny nose (avoir le nez qui coule), coughing (tousser), and sneezing (éternuer), helping you describe how you feel when you're unwell.

The Near Future Tense with "Aller"

A key grammar point in this lesson is the use of the near future tense (le futur proche) formed with aller + infinitive verb. For example, phrases like Je vais aller chez le médecin (I am going to go to the doctor) help you express upcoming actions related to health. You will practice conjugating aller and using it naturally in medical contexts.

Practical Dialogues and Situations

The lesson offers situational dialogues such as at the medical office, the pharmacy, and telephone calls to make appointments. These conversations allow you to practice expressing symptoms and requesting medications, thus improving your communicative skills in real-life health-related scenarios.

Vocabulary Clusters and Exercises

You will also classify words into categories like symptoms and people/places linked to illness, which helps organize your vocabulary effectively. Multiple-choice exercises focus on correctly conjugating verbs in context, while a short story puts your new knowledge into practice through a narrative about going to the doctor.

Important Notes on Language Use

In French, health-related expressions often differ from English in structure and vocabulary. For example, avoir mal à la gorge literally means "to have pain in the throat," instead of using a verb like "to hurt." Understanding these differences supports accurate and natural communication.

Expressions such as prendre un médicament (to take medicine) or fixer un rendez-vous (to make an appointment) are central phrases to master for health situations.

These lessons would not be possible without our amazing partners🙏