Anatomy
Name the body from head to toe and say what hurts — out loud.
The pattern that carries every health conversation is me duele: me duele la cabeza — my head hurts — switching to me duelen for plurals (me duelen los pies), and never yo duelo. Learn each body part with its article, because gender doesn't follow the ending: la mano is feminine, el pie masculine. And locals rarely reach for el estómago — in Mexico a stomach ache is me duele la panza, in Argentina and Chile it's la guata.
Below: the words lesson by lesson, what locals actually say when something hurts, the slips that give beginners away — and a way to practise it all out loud, in conversation, with no flashcards and nothing to label.
The warm-up pack
What you actually say when something hurts — not the diagram.
01 · The one that means it's bad
Me anda matando la cabeza.
My head is killing me. (Mexico) — a step up from me duele la cabeza.
This is what people reach for once a normal headache turns brutal, not the textbook line.
02 · The regional swap
Me arde la cara.
My face is stinging. (Argentina, said instead of me duele la cara)
Same idea, different verb — arder (to sting/burn) instead of doler. Swap the verb, keep the rest.
03 · After a rough night
Tengo los ojos hinchados.
My eyes are swollen. (Caribbean/Colombia, after crying or no sleep)
Sometimes the body just IS a state, not hurting — tengo + adjective, no doler needed.
04 · What actually hurts, a tooth
Me anda doliendo la muela.
My tooth's been aching. (Mexico)
For a toothache, locals reach for muela (molar) more than diente — diente is teeth in general.
05 · When your neck won't turn
Se me trabó el cuello.
My neck locked up.
Se me + verb is the pattern — the body part does it to you, you don't do it to yourself.
06 · The accident that happens mid-sentence
Me corté la lengua.
I bit my tongue. (literally: I cut my tongue)
Said casually, not dramatically — cortar covers a bite here, not just a real cut.
07 · Before you crack your knuckles
Me trueno los dedos.
I crack my knuckles. (Mexico)
Tronar (to thunder/crack) is the verb locals use here — not romper.
08 · When one workout too many catches up
Tengo el hombro hecho pedazos.
My shoulder is wrecked.
Hecho pedazos — "made into pieces" — is the vivid, casual way to say something's shot.
09 · The word Mexicans actually use
Me duele la panza.
My stomach hurts. (Mexico — panza, not estómago)
Estómago is the textbook word. Panza is what you'll actually hear across the counter.
10 · Said to a friend, not a doctor
Ando con dolor de barriga.
I've got a stomach ache.
Andar con + noun is the casual way to mention what's bothering you — less clinical than tengo.
11 · The twist everyone's had
Me tuerzo el tobillo.
I'm twisting my ankle. (Argentina)
Reflexive torcer — same logic as se me trabó earlier: the ankle does it to itself.
FLUENT
Finally, someone to talk to in Spanish.
Ten-minute spoken lessons. A teacher who answers back — and gently fixes what you got wrong.
First 10 lessons freeandbefluent.com/spanish/anatomyRegional Spanish
Textbooks teach one word. Locals use several — pick your region's and stay consistent.
Watch out
The part no drill site can do
Olivia
Your vocabulary teacher for this pack
There are no flashcards in the Anatomy lessons and no diagram to label — you talk, and Olivia keeps building the moments where the words matter: you're at a pharmacy explaining a headache and a sore throat; you're at a checkup saying where it hurts and how much; you're calling a friend to cancel plans because you're sick, and she asks what's wrong. Every answer starts with me duele… and a body part you just learned — out loud, until it's automatic.
Blank mid-sentence and nothing bad happens — she waits. That's the practice, without unnecessary judgement.
Finish the 5 lessons and Anatomy is yours — earned, not given.
First 10 lessons free · 10-minute spoken lessons · your AI coaching team remembers you
Quick answers
Me duele la cabeza. For a really bad one, Mexicans say me anda matando la cabeza — my head is killing me.
The verb agrees with the thing that hurts, not with you. Singular: me duele la cabeza. Plural: me duelen los pies. And it's always me duele, never yo duelo.
Textbook: me duele el estómago. Real life: in Mexico it's me duele la panza, in Argentina and Chile la guata, and an upset stomach in the Caribbean and Colombia is tengo el estómago revuelto.
Body-part gender doesn't always follow the -o/-a endings, so learn each word with its article as one unit: la mano (feminine despite the -o), el pie, la cabeza, el brazo.
Two phrases locals use constantly: se me durmió la mano — my hand fell asleep — and me dio un calambre en el brazo for a sudden cramp (or me agarró un calambre en la pierna for your leg).
