監護病房 / 监护病房
jiānhù bìngfáng
In Mandarin, intensive care unit (ICU) can be expressed as 監護病房 / 监护病房 (jiānhù bìngfáng). If unsure, use 監護病房 / 监护病房. Wiktionary also lists 重病監護室 / 重病监护室 (zhòngbìng jiānhùshì) and 加護病房 / 加护病房 (jiāhù bìngfáng).
Meaning: intensive care unit (noun)
Ways to say it
| Mandarin | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 監護病房 / 监护病房 | jiānhù bìngfáng |
| 重病監護室 / 重病监护室 | zhòngbìng jiānhùshì |
| 加護病房 / 加护病房 | jiāhù bìngfáng |
The term refers to an intensive care unit. Many medical professionals and patients in modern Chinese hospitals frequently use the English acronym 'ICU' directly during conversation. The component 监护室 can also be used to mean a 'monitoring room' or 'ward'.
Which one should you use?
The forms differ by usage and region. 重症监护室 is a formal way to say intensive care unit, while 監護病房 / 监护病房 and 加護病房 / 加护病房 are also common.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Taiwan, the standard way to refer to an ICU is 加護病房 / 加护病房.
How do you pronounce it?
jiānhù bìngfáng
Did you know?
- Because the English term 'ICU' sounds like the Mandarin phrase 我爱你 (I love you) when spoken quickly, it is occasionally used in internet slang as a romantic pun.
- In some Chinese hospital contexts, the phrase 进ICU is used as a shorthand for a critical decline in a patient's health, even before they have actually been admitted.
- The term 重症 / 重症 in 重症监护室 literally translates to 'heavy illness', a common way in Chinese to describe a critical or serious condition.
Example sentences for Mandarin are not verified yet.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “icu” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
