Translation guide
How to express feeling faint, dizzy, or lightheaded in Japanese, from medical symptoms to everyday expressions.
Expressing that you feel like you might lose consciousness, often due to heat, illness, or shock.
Describing a spinning sensation or unsteadiness without loss of consciousness.
Expressing that you feel overwhelmed or faint due to surprise, fear, or strong emotion.
Literally 'almost faint from shock'. Used for extreme surprise or emotional distress.
その知らせを聞いて卒倒しそうになった。
I almost fainted when I heard the news.
めまい is a general medical term for dizziness/vertigo. ふらふら describes unsteadiness and weakness, like being lightheaded. くらくら is a sudden dizzy spell, often from standing up too fast.
めまいがひどくて立てない。
I'm so dizzy I can't stand.
熱でふらふらする。
I feel woozy from the fever.
立ちくらみでくらくらした。
I got a head rush and felt faint.
Literally 'one's mind becomes distant'. Used when feeling faint or lightheaded, often from shock, exhaustion, or overwhelming emotion.
暑さで気が遠くなりそうだ。
I feel faint from the heat.
Means 'to feel dizzy/lightheaded'. Commonly used for vertigo or faintness.
立ち上がったらめまいがした。
I felt faint when I stood up.
Literally 'almost collapse'. Describes the physical sensation of being about to fall over from faintness.
あまりの痛みで倒れそうになった。
I almost fainted from the pain.
Medical term for 'to have an anemia attack', often used when feeling faint due to low blood pressure or iron deficiency.
貧血を起こして倒れた。
I felt faint and collapsed from anemia.
Literally 'eyes spin'. Used for dizziness, often from spinning around or illness.
ぐるぐる回って目が回った。
I spun around and felt dizzy.
Onomatopoeic word for feeling unsteady, lightheaded, or woozy.
熱でふらふらする。
I feel faint and woozy from the fever.
Onomatopoeic word for a sudden dizzy spell, often when standing up quickly.
急に立ち上がったらくらくらした。
I felt faint when I stood up suddenly.
Literally 'almost lose consciousness'. More direct than 気が遠くなる.
恐怖で気を失いそうになった。
I felt faint from fear.