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Medicine vocabulary · History Taking and Examination

Physical examination

Meaning in medicine, with examples

/ˌfɪzɪkəl ɪɡˌzæmɪˈneɪʃən/nounCore term

In medicine, physical examination means: The part of a consultation where the doctor looks at, feels, taps and listens to the patient's body to find signs of disease.

In Turkish: fizik muayene, muayene

How it is used

Often shortened to 'exam' (US) or 'examination' (UK), and written O/E (on examination) in notes. Doctors examine a patient, perform or carry out an examination, and record the findings.

Example sentences

  1. Physical examination was unremarkable apart from mild tenderness in the right lower abdomen.

  2. I'd like to do a quick physical examination. Could you lie back on the couch?

Common collocations

  • perform a physical examination
  • on examination
  • examination findings
  • unremarkable examination
  • take a historyTo ask a patient structured questions about their current problem, past illnesses, medicines, family and lifestyle in order to understand what is wrong.
  • signEvidence of disease that a doctor can see, feel, hear or measure, such as a rash, a heart murmur or a high temperature, rather than something the patient reports.
  • palpateTo examine part of the body by feeling it carefully with the hands or fingers, for example to check the size of an organ or to find a lump.
  • tendernessPain or discomfort that appears when a doctor presses on a part of the body during an examination.
  • vital signsThe basic body measurements checked to see how ill a patient is: temperature, pulse, breathing rate and blood pressure, and often oxygen level.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: History Taking and Examination

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.