At the doctor with the results in Slovenian
A doctor’s office, a person has come for test results in Slovenian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Dober dan, prišel sem po izvid.» — Good afternoon, I’ve come for the results.; «Pregled je pokazal vnetje v sklepu.» — The examination showed inflammation in the joint. Every line can be played right on the page. The conversation is predictable: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a doctor’s office, a person has come for test results. The conversation is short and predictable — which is exactly what makes it good for a first try: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
- Dober dan, prišel sem po izvid.Good afternoon, I’ve come for the results.
- Pregled je pokazal vnetje v sklepu.The examination showed inflammation in the joint.
- Ali je to okužba?Is it an infection?
- Ne. Predpisal vam bom tablete proti bolečinam.No. I’ll prescribe you a painkiller.
- Imajo kakšen stranski učinek?Do they have a side effect?
- Lahko vas boli želodec, zato jih jemljite po jedi.Your stomach may hurt, so take them after meals.
- Kdaj se bom počutil bolje?When will I feel better?
- Čez teden dni. Izogibajte se dvigovanju težkih stvari.In a week. Avoid heavy lifting.
Lines one by one
| Slovenian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Dober dan, prišel sem po izvid. | — | Good afternoon, I’ve come for the results. |
| Pregled je pokazal vnetje v sklepu. | — | The examination showed inflammation in the joint. |
| Ali je to okužba? | — | Is it an infection? |
| Ne. Predpisal vam bom tablete proti bolečinam. | — | No. I’ll prescribe you a painkiller. |
| Imajo kakšen stranski učinek? | — | Do they have a side effect? |
| Lahko vas boli želodec, zato jih jemljite po jedi. | — | Your stomach may hurt, so take them after meals. |
| Kdaj se bom počutil bolje? | — | When will I feel better? |
| Čez teden dni. Izogibajte se dvigovanju težkih stvari. | — | In a week. Avoid heavy lifting. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and it gets in the way badly. It is one of the most reliably measured findings in the entire field.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Slovenian in this situation?
“Dober dan, prišel sem po izvid.” — Good afternoon, I’ve come for the results.. The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.