A1 · Beginner · Health · 119 words · ~2 min read

💊 A Visit to the Chemist

Language focus: have got · needs & symptoms

Before you read

This story is where have got becomes genuinely useful, because English describes most symptoms with it. Notice that you do not be a cough or feel a cough — you have got one.

Lara has got a bad cough, so she goes to the chemist. The pharmacist behind the counter is helpful and kind.

“I have got a sore throat and a cough,” says Lara. “Have you got any medicine?” The pharmacist gives her some syrup and lozenges.

“Take one spoon twice a day,” he says. “We have nearly run out of these, so you are lucky!” Lara pays and feels hopeful.

Lara has not got a temperature, so she does not need to see a doctor. She has got a busy week, and she wants to feel better quickly.

At home she takes one spoon of the syrup with a glass of water. By the evening her throat is much better.

Key vocabulary (8 words)

chemistnoun: A shop that sells medicine (UK).
pharmacistnoun: A person who is trained to prepare and sell medicine.
coughnoun: A sudden, noisy push of air from the throat.
medicinenoun: Something you take to feel better when you are ill.
syrupnoun: A thick, sweet liquid medicine.
throatnoun: The passage at the back of your mouth.
spoonnoun: A tool with a small bowl for eating or measuring.
soreadjective: Painful, especially when touched or used.

Phrasal verbs in this story

run out — To run out of something means to have no more of it left.

The grammar in this story

have got for symptoms

“I have got a sore throat and a cough.” “Lara has got a bad cough.” English uses have got for almost every illness: a headache, a temperature, a cold, flu. Many languages use be here, which is why I am cough is such a frequent beginner error.

The question and the negative

“Have you got any medicine?” — have moves to the front and got stays with the verb. The negative is “She has not got a temperature.” In American English you will more often hear Do you have…? and She doesn’t have…; both are correct and mean the same thing.

any in questions and negatives

“Have you got any medicine?” Questions and negatives take any; positive statements take some. So the pharmacist replies by giving her some syrup. This pair follows the same rule you met at the market.

Frequency for taking medicine

“Take one spoon twice a day.” English counts doses with once, twice, three times plus a day or a week. Note it is twice a day, not two times a day, in careful English — and these longer expressions go at the end of the sentence.

Phrases you can reuse today

I have got a sore throat.: The standard way to report a symptom.
Have you got anything for a cough?: Anything for… is exactly how you ask at a chemist.
Take it twice a day.: Dose frequency at the end of the sentence.
I hope you feel better soon.: The fixed goodbye to someone who is ill.

Comprehension quiz

Where does Lara go?
- The chemist
- The hospital
- The market
Show answer
The chemist
What is wrong with her?
- A broken leg
- A cough and sore throat
- A headache only
Show answer
A cough and sore throat
What does the pharmacist give her?
- Syrup and lozenges
- Bandages
- A plaster
Show answer
Syrup and lozenges
How often should she take a spoon?
- Once a week
- Twice a day
- Every hour
Show answer
Twice a day
“Run out of” something means to…
- have none left
- buy more
- share it
Show answer
have none left

Now use it yourself

Reading builds recognition; writing your own sentences is what turns it into something you can actually say. Three short tasks:

Describe three symptoms using have got.
Write a short chemist conversation with one any question and one some answer.
What do you do when you have got a cold? Answer in three sentences.