A quick note before the list: there is no single official “nursing vocabulary list” published by Goethe-Institut, telc, or the German nursing authorities that this article is drawing from. What follows is a working vocabulary set built from general clinical and patient-care German — the kind of terminology that comes up constantly once your Pflegeausbildung starts. Treat it as a head start for building your own vocabulary, not a substitute for structured coursework or the B2-level general German you’ll need regardless of specialisation.
Why nursing training needs vocabulary beyond general B2
Pflegeausbildung (nursing training) is one of the routes where B2 is expected upfront rather than grown into during the first year, because instruction and patient interaction are clinical from day one — see our full breakdown of B1 or B2: which level Ausbildung actually requires. General B2 German gets you through everyday conversation and vocational-school theory; it doesn’t automatically include the specific vocabulary you need to talk to a patient about pain, or document a shift handover. That’s a separate, more targeted layer of learning worth starting early.
Basic body vocabulary
der Kopf (head), der Arm (arm), das Bein (leg), der Bauch (abdomen/stomach), die Brust (chest), der Rücken (back), das Herz (heart), die Lunge (lung), die Niere (kidney), die Haut (skin), der Puls (pulse), der Blutdruck (blood pressure).
Care and treatment vocabulary
die Pflege (care), pflegen (to care for/nurse), die Grundpflege (basic care — washing, feeding, mobility support), die Behandlungspflege (treatment care — medication, wound care, clinical procedures), die Wunde (wound), der Verband (bandage/dressing), die Spritze (injection/syringe), die Infusion (IV drip), der Katheter (catheter), das Medikament (medication), Medikamente verabreichen (to administer medication).
Equipment and setting
das Fieberthermometer (thermometer), die Waage (scale), der Rollstuhl (wheelchair), der Rollator (walking frame), das Krankenbett (hospital bed), die Station (ward), die Visite (doctor’s rounds), die Übergabe (shift handover), der Schichtdienst (shift work).
Roles and titles
die Pflegefachkraft (qualified nurse — the current legal title under Germany’s Pflegeberufegesetz, replacing the older Krankenschwester/Krankenpfleger terms), der/die Auszubildende (trainee, commonly shortened to Azubi), die Stationsleitung (ward manager), der Arzt / die Ärztin (doctor, male/female).
Phrases you’ll actually use with patients
- Wie geht es Ihnen? — How are you? (formal)
- Haben Sie Schmerzen? — Are you in pain?
- Wo tut es weh? — Where does it hurt?
- Haben Sie Allergien? — Do you have any allergies?
- Ich messe jetzt Ihren Blutdruck. — I’m going to take your blood pressure now.
- Bitte atmen Sie tief ein. — Please breathe in deeply.
- Ich helfe Ihnen beim Aufstehen. — I’ll help you get up.
Note the consistent use of the formal Sie form throughout — this is standard and expected in all patient-facing German, regardless of the patient’s age, and it’s worth building the habit early rather than defaulting to informal du from casual study materials.
A specialised exam exists for exactly this
Goethe-Institut runs a dedicated Goethe-Test PRO Pflege, a B2-level assessment specifically built around nursing and care-setting language, separate from its general B2 certificate. If your training route is healthcare-specific, it’s worth checking whether your employer or training programme expects this alongside or instead of a general B2 certificate, rather than assuming general B2 automatically covers it.
How to actually build this vocabulary
Rote memorisation of word lists rarely survives contact with a real clinical conversation. Pair vocabulary like this with speaking practice specifically — see our guide to preparing for the Sprechen (speaking) exam for how paired, scenario-based practice builds usable fluency rather than passive recognition.
Related reading
For the training route itself, see our Nursing Ausbildung (Pflegefachmann/-frau) in Germany guide, or if you already hold a nursing qualification from India, Ausbildung for Indian Nursing Graduates: Complete Pathway covers the recognition route instead.
Planning your nursing Ausbildung route?
Talk to us about the language timeline for healthcare and nursing training specifically — it’s one of the routes where getting the language runway right matters most before you travel.
Where this comes from: vocabulary and phrasing in this article are compiled from general German clinical and care-setting usage, not from a single official wordlist. The Goethe-Test PRO Pflege is listed on Goethe-Institut’s German examinations page. The B2 expectation for healthcare training is discussed in our B1 or B2 breakdown.
