藥店 / 药店
yàodiàn
The English word pharmacy is translated into Chinese as 藥店 / 药店 (yàodiàn). If unsure, use 藥店 / 药店. Wiktionary also lists 藥房 / 药房 (yàofáng) and 藥局 / 药局 (yàojú).
Meaning: a place where prescription drugs are dispensed (noun)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 藥店 / 药店 | yàodiàn |
| 藥房 / 药房 | yàofáng |
| 藥局 / 药局 | yàojú |
| 藥鋪 / 药铺 | yàopù |
The word refers to a place where prescription drugs are dispensed.
What does it mean word for word?
藥店 / 药店 is composed of 藥 (medicine) and 店 (shop). 藥房 / 药房 is composed of 藥 (medicine) and 房 (room).
Which one should you use?
藥店 / 药店 typically refers to a retail storefront or a standalone drug store. In contrast, 藥房 / 药房 often refers to a pharmacy located within a hospital or a specific department for dispensing medicine.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
藥房 / 药房 is a formal way to say pharmacy. 藥鋪 / 药铺 carries a connotation of a traditional Chinese medicine shop and is less common in modern urban contexts for Western medicine.
Is it said differently in some regions?
藥局 / 药局 is a common term for a pharmacy in Taiwan and certain other regions. In Taiwan, people often use 藥局 / 药局 to mean pharmacy.
How do you pronounce it?
yàodiàn
Did you know?
- While 藥店 / 药店 refers to the store, the medicine itself is often called 藥 / 药, which also doubles as a colloquial term for 'drug' in a narcotic sense.
- In traditional Chinese medicine shops, known as 藥鋪 / 药铺, you may find a 'medicine cabinet' wall containing hundreds of small wooden drawers, each holding a different dried herb or mineral.
- The character 藥 / 药 (medicine) contains a radical that relates to grass or herbs, reflecting the ancient origins of medicine in Chinese culture.
Examples in context
- 我需要去药店买些药品。I need to go to the pharmacy to buy some medicine.
- 请问附近有没有药房？Excuse me, is there a pharmacy nearby?
- 我得去药店买点感冒药。I need to go to the pharmacy to buy some cold medicine.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “pharmacy” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
