症狀 / 症状
zhèngzhuàng
The English word 'symptom' is translated into Chinese as 症狀 / 症状 (zhèngzhuàng). If unsure, use 症狀 / 症状. Wiktionary also lists 病徵 / 病征 (bìngzhēng) and 病象 (bìngxiàng).
Meaning: something that indicates a disease or disorder (noun)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 症狀 / 症状 | zhèngzhuàng |
| 病徵 / 病征 | bìngzhēng |
| 病象 | bìngxiàng |
| 病狀 / 病状 | bìngzhuàng |
| 症候 | zhènghòu |
In Chinese, 症狀 / 症状 (zhèngzhuàng) is used to describe both physical and psychological symptoms. It is the standard term used in everyday conversation.
What does it mean word for word?
The word 症狀 / 症状 (zhèngzhuàng) is composed of 症 (zhèng), meaning illness or symptom and 狀 (zhuàng), meaning condition or state.
Which one should you use?
While 症狀 / 症状 (zhèngzhuàng) is the most common general term for a symptom, 病徵 / 病征 (bìngzhēng) is often used in more formal or clinical medical contexts to refer to a clinical sign or symptom. Other terms include 病象 (bìngxiàng), 病狀 / 病状 (bìngzhuàng) and 症候 (zhènghòu).
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Hong Kong, the Cantonese term for symptom is 症狀.
How does it change in a sentence?
As a noun, 症狀 / 症状 (zhèngzhuàng) does not change its form for pluralization.
How do you pronounce it?
zhèngzhuàng
Did you know?
- While 症狀 refers to the state of the illness, the term 病象 literally translates to 'disease image' or 'disease phenomenon'.
- In traditional Chinese medicine, the concept of 症 is often linked to the 'pattern' of a disease rather than just a single symptom.
- The character 症 in 症狀 is used to form the names of many common syndromes in Chinese, such as 'Internet addiction syndrome' 網路成癮症.
Examples in context
- 最近出现了一些奇怪的不适。Some strange discomfort has appeared recently.
- 我不太清楚这些病症的原因。I'm not sure about the reasons behind these symptoms.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “symptom” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
