疫苗

• Pinyin: yì miáo
• Hanzi breakdown: 疫 = 疒 + 役 (illness radical + toil — widespread epidemic); 苗 = 艹 + 田 (grass + field — seedling; biological seed of immunity)

Meaning

Vaccine; a biological preparation that provides immunity to a specific disease.

The standard medical and public health term. Key collocations: 接种疫苗 (to get vaccinated), 疫苗研发 (vaccine development), 疫苗接种率 (vaccination rate), 疫苗犹豫 (vaccine hesitancy). Became extremely high-frequency during the COVID-19 pandemic. Also used metaphorically: 精神疫苗 (psychological vaccine — building mental resilience).

Examples

1. 世界卫生组织呼吁各国政府加大疫苗接种推广力度，力争在年底前将目标人群的覆盖率提升至九成以上。 The World Health Organization is urging governments to step up vaccination efforts, aiming to raise coverage among target populations to over 90% by the end of the year.
2. 这款针对呼吸道合胞病毒的疫苗完成了大规模三期临床试验，结果显示对老年高危人群的保护效力超过百分之八十二。 This vaccine for respiratory syncytial virus completed a large-scale Phase III clinical trial, and the results showed protective efficacy of more than 82% in high-risk older adults.
3. 疫苗研发周期长、投入大的特点使得大多数制药企业不愿单独承担研发风险，公私合作模式因此成为应对新型传染病的主流策略。 Because vaccine development takes a long time and requires huge investment, most pharmaceutical companies are unwilling to shoulder the R&D risk alone; public-private partnerships have therefore become the mainstream strategy for responding to new infectious diseases.

Usage Guide

Context: medicine, public health, policy, science

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 针对高致病性禽流感的广谱疫苗目前已进入二期临床试验阶段，若获批上市将大幅提升全球对下一次流感大流行的应对能力。(The broad-spectrum vaccine targeting highly pathogenic avian influenza has now entered Phase II clinical trials; if approved for market release, it would significantly enhance global preparedness for the next influenza pandemic.)
• 提高欠发达地区疫苗接种率，不只是公共卫生问题，也是公平正义的要求。(Raising vaccine coverage in underdeveloped regions is not only a public health issue but also a requirement of equity and justice.)

Don't Say

• 打一个疫苗针 — 疫苗 already implies an injection in most contexts; saying 疫苗针 is redundant; say 接种疫苗 or 打疫苗 for natural expression

Origin & History

疫 (epidemic/plague — 疒 illness radical + 役 military service/toil; a widespread affliction) + 苗 (seedling/sprout — 艹 grass radical + 田 field; a young plant; by analogy, a biological seed of immunity)

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal