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Pharmacy

Pharmacy

약국이 어디예요?
[ yakgugi eodiyeyo? ]

Where is the pharmacy?

약이 필요해요.
[ yagi piryohaeyo. ]

I need medicine.

진통제 있어요?
[ jintongje isseoyo? ]

Do you have painkillers?

해열제 있어요?
[ haeyeolje isseoyo? ]

Do you have a fever reducer?

감기약 주세요.
[ gamgiyak juseyo. ]

Please give me cold medicine.

알레르기 약 있어요?
[ allerugi yak isseoyo? ]

Do you have allergy medicine?

처방전 있어요.
[ cheobangjeon isseoyo. ]

I have a prescription.

어떻게 먹어요?
[ eotteoke meogeoyo? ]

How should I take it?

하루에 몇 번 먹어요?

How many times a day?

식전에 먹어요, 식후에 먹어요?
[ sikjeone meogeoyo, sikhu-e meogeoyo? ]

Before or after meals?

부작용이 있어요?
[ bujag-yongi isseoyo? ]

Are there any side effects?

薬局はどこにありますか?
[ Yakgugi eodie itnayo? ]

Where is the pharmacy?

風邪薬をください。
[ Gamgiyak jom juseyo. ]

Please give me cold medicine.

頭痛薬はありますか?
[ Dutongyang itnayo? ]

Do you have headache medicine?

鎮痛剤を1つください。
[ Jintongje hana juseyo. ]

One painkiller, please.

消化剤をください。
[ Sohwaje jom juseyo. ]

Please give me digestive medicine.

解熱剤をください。
[ Haeyeolje juseyo. ]

Please give me a fever reducer.

酔い止めはありますか?
[ Meolmiyak itnayo? ]

Do you have motion sickness medicine?

絆創膏と軟膏をください。
[ Banchanggowa yeongo juseyo. ]

Band-Aids and ointment, please.

湿布をください。
[ Paseu jom juseyo. ]

Please give me pain relief patches.

1日に何回飲めばいいですか?
[ Harue myeot beon meogeoya haeyo? ]

How many times a day should I take this?

食後30分に飲んでください。
[ Sikhu samsip bune deuseyo. ]

Take it 30 minutes after meals.

1回に2錠ずつ飲んでください。
[ Han beone du alssik deuseyo. ]

Take two pills at a time.

食前に飲まなければなりません。
[ Sikjeone deuseya hamnida. ]

You must take it before meals.

副作用はありますか?
[ Bujagyongi itnayo? ]

Are there any side effects?

眠くなることがあります。
[ Jollil su itseumnida. ]

It may make you drowsy.

Cultural notes

Walking into a South Korean pharmacy (약국 - Yakguk) is a very different experience from visiting a drugstore in the West. Identifiable by a bright sign featuring the character 약 (Yak) often inside a red or green cross, pharmacies here do not have large aisles where you can browse and pick up painkillers or cold medicine off the shelf yourself. Instead, all medications are kept strictly behind the counter. You must step up and directly explain your symptoms to the pharmacist (약사 - Yaksa). The pharmacist acts as an essential primary care consultant. Based on what you tell them, they will usually mix a highly customized cocktail of pills for you. Rather than handing you a whole box of aspirin, they use a specialized machine that seals individual doses of different pills into small, easy-to-tear paper or plastic strips. Each little packet contains exactly what you need for a single dose. When they hand over these packets, you will almost always hear the most famous medical instruction in Korea: 식후 삼십 분에 드세요 (Sikhu samsip bune deuseyo - "Please take this 30 minutes after your meal"). Koreans firmly believe that taking medicine on an empty stomach is incredibly harsh on the body, so this rule is practically gospel. Another fascinating feature of the Yakguk is the massive array of tiny glass bottles near the cash register. These are liquid herbal digestive aids, the most legendary being Gas Whal Myung Su (까스활명수). If you have indigestion from eating too much Korean barbecue, you don't take a pill; you drink one of these potent, herbaceous, and fizzy tonics for instant relief!