Ways to say it
| Spanish | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| medicamento | /medikaˈmento/ | masculine |
| medicación | /medikaˈθjon/ /medikaˈsjon/ |
The term refers to one or all the medicines regularly taken by a patient. You might use fármaco in medical contexts to emphasize the scientific nature of the drugs, or remedios in informal conversation, though remedios often refers to home or natural remedies.
Which one should you use?
medicamento is typically used to refer to a specific type of medicine or a single drug product, whereas medicación is used to refer to the ongoing process or the entire regimen of taking medicine.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Latin America, medicamento is more prevalent, but in Spain, people may commonly use medicina to refer to medication.
How does it change in a sentence?
medicamento is a masculine noun. Its plural is medicamentos. medicación is a feminine noun. Its plural is medicaciones. Other related terms include antibiótico (antibiotic), analgésico (painkiller), antidepresivo (antidepressant) and antiinflamatorio (anti-inflammatory).
How do you pronounce it?
/medikaˈmento/
Did you know?
- The Spanish word receta is used for both a medical prescription for medicación and a cooking recipe.
- In some Latin American countries, botica is an archaic but still used term for a pharmacy where one buys medicamentos, reflecting a colonial-era tradition.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, remedios caseros refers to traditional home remedies, such as herbal teas or poultices, which are often tried before seeking professional medicación.
Examples in context
- Me he tomado la medicación.I have taken my medication.This sentence is useful for using the form medicación.Tatoeba #1963017 by teskmon, translation #1928782 by Sharaf78
- Es hora de tomarte la medicación.It's time to take your medication.Tatoeba #10281383 by manufrutos, translation #10279421 by shekitten
- Necesito medicamentos para el dolor.I need pain medication.This sentence is useful for using the form medicamento.Tatoeba #4410126 by pchamorro, translation #436867 by lukaszpp
- Necesito comprar medicamentos para el resfriado.I need to buy medication for a cold.
- Mi médico me recetó un antibiótico para tratar la infección.My doctor prescribed an antibiotic to treat the infection.
- Estos analgésicos ayudarán con el dolor de cabeza.These painkillers will help with the headache.
- 17 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Elena and Daniel are in the kitchen discussing his health.
- Elena¿Ya tomaste tu medicamento, Daniel?Did you take your medication already, Daniel?
- DanielSí, ya me tomé el medicamento.Yes, I already took the medication.
- ElenaQué bueno, es importante para tu salud.That's good, it is important for your health.
- DanielGracias por recordármelo, Elena.Thanks for reminding me, Elena.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “medication” translations and entries medicamento, medicación, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
