Immersion Module

A Day at the Clinic: John's Checkup

Improve your reading comprehension through a narrative set in the world of visiting the doctor & symptoms.

Beginner English
Yesterday, John woke up feeling . He had a and his joints felt like they were on fire. He knew he had to his meeting at work because he felt . He decided it was time to visit the local clinic. When he arrived, the waiting room was , and everyone seemed to be coughing or sneezing. John sat down and tried to the medical history form, but his hand was shaking. He told the receptionist that he might have something serious because his throat was and he had a sharp pain in his chest.

Context Clues

Look for meaning in the surrounding sentences before tapping the highlighted badges.

Active Reading

Read once for the overall plot, then a second time to master the specific expressions.

Story Glossary

Detailed breakdown of phrases used in the narrative.

under the weather

/አንዳር ዘ ዌዘር/

Idiom

ጤና ማጣት

Feeling slightly ill or not well.

ትንሽ መታመም ወይም ጥሩ ስሜት አለመሰማት።

Contextual Note

Used to describe a minor illness like a cold or headache.

splitting headache

/ስፕሊቲንግ ሄዴክ/

Colloquial Expression

ኃይለኛ የራስ ምታት

A very severe or intense headache.

በጣም የሚበረታ የራስ ምታት።

Contextual Note

Describes a pain that feels like the head is breaking apart.

call off

/ኮል ኦፍ/

Phrasal Verb

መሰረዝ

To cancel something.

የታቀደ ነገር እንዳይደረግ መከልከል ወይም ማቋረጥ።

Contextual Note

To decide that a planned event will not take place.

as weak as a kitten

/አዝ ዊክ አዝ ኤ ኪተን/

Simile

በጣም የደከመ

Very weak or fragile.

አቅም ማጣት ወይም በጣም መዛልን ለመግለጽ የሚጠቅም ንጽጽር።

Contextual Note

Comparing a person's physical strength to that of a small, young cat.

packed like sardines

/ፓክድ ላይክ ሳርዲንስ/

Simile

በጣም ተጨናንቆ

Very crowded.

ሰዎች በጣም ተቀራርበውና ተጋፍተው ያሉበት ሁኔታ።

Contextual Note

Describing a place where people are squeezed closely together.

fill out

/ፊል አውት/

Phrasal Verb

ቅጽ መሙላት

To complete a form or document.

መረጃዎችን በወረቀት ላይ በማስፈር ማጠናቀቅ።

Contextual Note

Writing necessary information in the blank spaces of a paper.

come down with

/ካም ዳውን ዊዝ/

Phrasal Verb

በበሽታ መያዝ

To become sick with a specific illness.

በአንድ በሽታ መጠቃት ወይም መታመም መጀመር።

Contextual Note

Often used for minor illnesses like the flu or a cold.

as dry as a bone

/አዝ ድራይ አዝ ኤ ቦን/

Simile

በጣም የደረቀ

Extremely dry.

ፈሳሽ በማጣት ምክንያት በጣም መድረቅ።

Contextual Note

Used to describe a lack of moisture, often in the throat during illness.