sepsis
/ˈsebsis/feminine
The Spanish word for sepsis is sepsis.
sepsis refers to a serious medical condition where the entire body undergoes inflammation.
Meaning: serious medical condition in which the whole body is inflamed (noun)
Which one should you use?
While sepsis is the standard term, you may also encounter the formal terms Infección Generalizada or Septicemia to describe the same medical condition.
How does it change in a sentence?
The noun is feminine, so it is preceded by the feminine article la, as in la sepsis.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈsebsis/
Did you know?
- The term sepsis in Spanish is a direct loan from the Ancient Greek word σῆψις, meaning it has traveled from ancient medicine into modern Spanish with its spelling almost entirely intact.
- In many Spanish-speaking regions, the longer term septicemia is actually more common in everyday conversation than the shorter sepsis.
- If a Spanish speaker is explaining the condition to someone without a medical background, they are much more likely to say infección en la sangre than to use the word sepsis itself.
Examples in context
- La sepsis es una emergencia médica.Sepsis is a medical emergency.
- El paciente desarrolló sepsis rápidamente.The patient developed sepsis quickly.
- Debemos tratar la sepsis de inmediato.We must treat the sepsis immediately.
Example conversation
A doctor is explaining a patient's condition to a family member in a hospital.
- LucíaMe temo que el paciente tiene sepsis.I am afraid the patient has sepsis.
- Mateo¿Es muy grave la sepsis?Is the sepsis very serious?
- LucíaSí, Mateo, es una situación crítica.Yes, Mateo, it is a critical situation.
- MateoEntiendo, gracias por la información, Lucía.I understand, thank you for the information, Lucía.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “sepsis” translations and entries sepsis, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries sepsis, CC BY-SA 4.0.
