Body-part words help you understand simple instructions, describe a person and explain where something hurts. A finger belongs to your hand, while a toe belongs to your foot. This lesson groups common words and shows how they behave in everyday English.
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Head and face
| Word | Meaning or location | Example |
|---|---|---|
| head | The part of the body above the neck. | Turn your head slowly. |
| face | The front of the head. | There is paint on your face. |
| eye | The organ used for seeing. | Close your eyes. |
| ear | The organ used for hearing. | Her hair covers her ears. |
| nose | The part used for smelling and breathing. | The mask covers his nose. |
| mouth | The opening used for speaking and eating. | Open your mouth. |
| tooth / teeth | The hard structures inside the mouth. | Brush your teeth. |
| tongue | The muscular part inside the mouth. | Touch the back of your teeth with your tongue. |
| chin | The part of the face below the mouth. | He rested his chin on his hand. |
| cheek | Either side of the face below the eyes. | There was a mark on her left cheek. |
Shoulders, arms and hands
Your shoulder connects your arm to the upper part of your body. Your elbow is the joint in the middle of the arm, and your wrist connects your hand to the forearm. Your thumb is the short, opposable digit on the hand; the others are commonly called fingers.
| Word | Example |
|---|---|
| neck | The scarf is around my neck. |
| shoulder | Carry the bag over one shoulder. |
| arm | Raise your right arm. |
| elbow | Keep your elbows off the wet table. |
| wrist | My watch is on my left wrist. |
| hand | Hold the handle with both hands. |
| finger | Point with one finger. |
| thumb | Press the button with your thumb. |
| palm | Place the coin in the palm of your hand. |
| back | The backpack rests against my back. |
Legs, knees, feet and toes
Your knee is the joint in the middle of the leg. Your ankle joins the lower leg to the foot, while your heel is the back part of the foot. These names let you locate a problem more precisely than saying only “my leg.”
| Word | Example |
|---|---|
| leg | Stretch one leg in front of you. |
| knee | There is mud on my knee. |
| ankle | The sock covers my ankle. |
| foot / feet | Both feet are on the floor. |
| heel | The shoe rubs against my heel. |
| toe | I can move all my toes. |
| chest | The badge is attached to the front of his shirt, at chest level. |
| stomach | In everyday speech, “my stomach hurts” often describes pain around the abdomen. |
Singular, plural and possessive forms
Remember one foot, two feet and one tooth, several teeth. Most other words here take a regular plural: shoulders, knees and toes. Say “My feet are cold,” with a plural verb.
English often uses a possessive word with body parts: “Raise your hand” and “She hurt her knee.” Compare “My knee hurts” with “My knees hurt.” The subject determines whether the verb takes -s.
Explain discomfort clearly
Use “My ankle hurts” to name a location, or “I have a headache” for the familiar headache expression. “My back aches” and “I have back pain” are also natural language patterns. These phrases describe symptoms; they do not identify a medical cause.
Clinician: Where does it hurt?
Patient: My right wrist hurts.
Clinician: When did it start?
Patient: Yesterday afternoon, after I fell.
Clinician: Can you show me exactly where?
Patient: Here, just below my thumb.
The dialogue practises location, time and a description of an event. Avoid substituting a diagnosis for what you actually know. If you need help finding words, “I don’t know the name of this part” followed by pointing can be useful.
Practice
Try the questions before reading the answers. Use the sentence or situation to explain your choice.
- Write the plural of foot.
- Choose: My shoulders is / are sore.
- Which is on the foot: a finger or a toe?
- Correct: “My knee hurt” when describing one knee in the present.
- Which joint is between the upper and lower leg?
- Complete: “Raise ______ hand” when a teacher addresses you.
Answers and explanations
| Question | Answer and explanation |
|---|---|
| 1 | Feet, an irregular plural. |
| 2 | Are, because shoulders is plural. |
| 3 | A toe. Fingers are on the hand. |
| 4 | My knee hurts. A singular subject takes hurts here. |
| 5 | The knee. The ankle is lower, by the foot. |
| 6 | Your. English commonly uses a possessive with body-part instructions. |
For pronunciation and spelling, compare the dictionary entries for shoulder, knee and toe. Notice that the written k in knee is silent.
