What does anaemia mean?
Word: Anaemia
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Anaemia means a condition in which the blood does not have enough healthy red blood cells or haemoglobin, so the body gets less oxygen. It often makes a person tired, weak and short of breath.
How do you spell anaemia?
Syllables: a - nae - mi - a
Tricky part: British spelling keeps ae in the middle, as in haemoglobin. The word ends in -ia, which students sometimes write as -ea.
Watch out for: anaemea, anaimia, annaemia
Memory tip: Anaemia is a shortage of haemoglobin, and both words carry the same ae pair: an-ae-mia, h-ae-moglobin.
Anaemia in a sentence
Example 1: Feeling weak and breathless on the stairs can be a sign of anaemia.
Example 2: Green leafy vegetables and lentils are good foods for people with anaemia.
Example 3: The school health camp tested every child in Class 5 for anaemia.
Fun Fact
Anaemia comes from Greek words meaning 'without blood', although people with anaemia do have blood, just too few healthy red cells.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Tally
You get 2 marks for each correctly spelt word in the list. How many marks will you get?
anaemia, diabetes, measels, jaundice, malaria, tetnus
a) 10
b) 12
c) 8
d) 6
Show answer
c) 8. Measles and tetanus are misspelt, leaving four correct words for eight marks.
Word Puzzle
Match the words with the correct options:
1. anaemia 2. fracture 3. allergy a. a crack or break in a bone b. a bad reaction of the body to things like dust or certain foods c. a shortage of healthy red blood cells
a) 1-c, 2-b, 3-a
b) 1-b, 2-a, 3-c
c) 1-c, 2-a, 3-b
d) 1-a, 2-c, 3-b
Show answer
c) 1-c, 2-a, 3-b. Anaemia is about the blood, a fracture about a bone, and an allergy about the body reacting to something harmless.
Jumble Tumble
Choose the correct sequence of the jumbled letters to form a meaningful word:
maneaia 1234567
a) 2534167
b) 2354761
c) 2354176
d) 2354167
Show answer
d) 2354167. In the order 2, 3, 5, 4, 1, 6, 7 the letters spell anaemia.
Spell Probe
One word in the sentence is misspelt. Choose the meaning of that word.
The doctor said anaemia was making Priya tired, so she gave her iron tablets and asked her to eat more spinnach.
a) a shortage of healthy red cells in the blood
b) a plant with dark green leaves eaten as a vegetable
c) a strong metal that the body needs in small amounts
d) small, solid pieces of medicine that you swallow
Show answer
b) a plant with dark green leaves eaten as a vegetable. Spinach has only one n; it is the leafy green vegetable.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which test would a doctor use to check for anaemia?
a) a dental check-up
b) a hearing test
c) a blood test
d) an eye test
Show answer
c) a blood test
2. A person with anaemia often looks ___.
a) pale
b) sunburnt
c) spotty
d) very red
Show answer
a) pale
