Telling doctor stomach hurts: Answering the doctor's questions about your symptoms

💬 拉肚子 (lā dù zi) literally means "pull belly". It's the everyday, non-embarrassing way to say diarrhea.

💬 吗 at the end turns a statement into a yes/no question. Here the "you" is simply left out because it's obvious.

💬 On its own 拉 (lā) means "pull", but in a doctor's office it is the polite shorthand for 拉肚子 "have diarrhea". 两次 means "two times". Use 两 (liǎng), not 二, before a counting word.

💬 Here 不 is said (bù), because 发 is not a falling tone. Before a falling tone it would change to (bú), as in 不去 (bú qù).

💬 Chinese often puts two facts side by side with just a comma, with no word for "but" or "and". That makes this a handy way to list symptoms: 头疼，不发烧 "headache, no fever".

💬 The word reads like a list: 肠 (cháng) "intestine" + 胃 (wèi) "stomach" + 炎 (yán) "inflammation". 炎 ends many illness names, as in 肺炎 "pneumonia".

🇨🇳 Doctors in Chinese hospitals often give a quick, hedged diagnosis like this after only a few questions. They will usually send you straight off for a blood or stool test, or to pick up medicine.

💬 开 usually means "open", but with 药 (yào) "medicine" it means to prescribe. 点 is short for 一点 "a little, some".

💬 给你 comes before the verb and marks who benefits from the action. For example, 我给你打电话 means "I'll call you".

🇨🇳 In Chinese hospitals you usually take the prescription slip to pay at a cashier window first, then collect the medicine at the hospital pharmacy.

💬 两 here doesn't mean exactly two. 这两天 is a loose "these few days", and can point to the recent past or the next few days depending on context.

💬 别 (bié) before a verb means "don't". Adding 的 after an adjective turns it into "food or things of that kind", as in 凉的 "cold stuff".

🇨🇳 Chinese doctors very often give diet advice like avoiding spicy, cold or greasy food. Expect to hear it with almost any stomach complaint.

💬 Put 别 (bié) before a verb to say "don't": 别喝酒 "don't drink alcohol". It's the usual word for instructions like this.