sick vs. ill

When someone isn’t feeling well, in English we can say they are sick or they are ill. Do you know the difference between these two words? Let’s take a look.

sick

In American English, sick means unwell, for example:

I can’t come to work today. I’m sick.

In British English, we usually only use sick to desribe somebody who feels bad and vomits or needs to vomit.

• Is there a bathroom? I feel sick.
• John has been sick all day.
• If you eat that food, you’ll be sick. (= you will vomit)

We also use sick in expressions such as sick leave and off sick to say that someone is not working because of a health problem:

• She’s not at work today. She’s on sick leave.
• Jake is off sick at the moment. He should be back in the office next week.

We can also use the word in a metaphorical sense in the phrase make somebody sick, to say that something gives an unpleasant feeling, especially anger:

He makes me sick the way he behaves!

ill

In British English, when talking about someone who is unwell, it is more common to say ill than sick:

• I can’t come to work today. I’m ill.
• If you spend too much time in the cold, you will get ill.
• She’s critically ill in hospital.

In American English, ill is more formal than sick and is generally used only for more serious, long-term health problems.