Classica Sinica Medica

暍

yē

Heatstroke · ye

Also rendered: Sunstroke (Literal) · Summerheat stroke (Clinical)

Pathology

Reviewed · 2026-10-28

At a glance

Pinyin
yē
Simplified
暍
Literal
暍 yē is the old word for being overcome by summer heat, and it is written with the sun at its left. It is not 暑 the season, nor 熱 the sensation, but the injury heat does to a body: the book's own gloss is four characters long — 太陽中熱者，暍是也.
Shuowen
**《說文·日部》：「暍，傷暑也。」** 从日，曷聲。**底本四見**（4-01、4-15、4-16、4-17），皆在卷四。**暍與暑別**：暑者時令之氣，暍者中暑之病；故 4-15 不曰「傷暑」而曰「中熱」，明其為病名而非氣名。**暍與濕、痓並列**，三者在卷四同卷，皆與傷寒相似而實不同，此本書開卷辨病之第一義。

In brief

Being overcome by summer heat, and the disease that follows. The book names it in four characters — the sun striking a person with heat — and describes it as fever with aching heaviness and a faint, weak pulse, brought on by summer heat or by cold water drunk in summer so that water moves through the skin. It is set beside spasm and dampness at the head of chapter four because all three resemble cold damage and are not it.

Senses in the classical corpus

1
The disease named 暍是也
太陽受暑熱之邪，其病名暍；不言傷暑而言中熱，以別於時令之氣
When the sun's heat strikes a person, the disease is called heatstroke. The book says struck by heat rather than injured by the season, to keep the disease apart from the season itself.
太陽中熱者，暍是也 — 傷寒論·辨痓濕暍脉證第四
2
Its pulse and body 太陽中暍者，身熱疼重
身熱而疼，疼而且重，脉反微弱，暑傷氣而不傷形，故脉不洪
Heat in the body, pain and heaviness, and a pulse that is faint and weak rather than surging: summer heat injures the qi and not the form. The book adds a second cause — cold water drunk in summer, moving through the skin.
太陽中暍者，身熱疼重，而脉微弱，此亦夏月傷冷水，水行皮中所致也 — 傷寒論·辨痓濕暍脉證第四
3
Set beside the other two 太陽痓、濕、暍三種
三者皆似傷寒而非傷寒，故卷四別論之
Spasm, dampness and heatstroke are three conditions that cold damage brings on and that resemble it; they are treated separately for that reason, and are shown here only because of the resemblance.
傷寒所致太陽痓、濕、暍三種，宜應别論，以爲與傷寒相似，故此見之 — 傷寒論·辨痓濕暍脉證第四

Occurrences in the classics

Passages where the term does real work, with the original, pinyin and English on the same line.

Display
4 passages
傷寒論·辨痓濕暍脉證第四 Read in context →
傷寒所致太陽痓、濕、暍三種，宜應别論，以爲與傷寒相似，故此見之。 伤寒所致太阳痓、湿、暍三种，宜应别论，以为与伤寒相似，故此见之。
shāng hán suǒ zhì tài yáng chì shī yē sān zhǒng yí yīng bié lùn yǐ wèi yǔ shāng hán xiāng shì gù cǐ jiàn zhī
The three conditions arising from cold damage, namely convulsion, dampness and heatstroke of the taiyang stage, deserve separate discussion; because their signs resemble those of cold damage, they are presented here.
**「暍」五篇共4見**（經文，不含成注），本文引第4篇第01段、第4篇第15段、第4篇第16段、第4篇第17段。
傷寒論·辨痓濕暍脉證第四 Read in context →
太陽中熱者，暍是也。 太阳中热者，暍是也。
tài yáng zhòng rè zhě yē shì yě
When taiyang disease is struck by summer heat, this is heatstroke.
暍之為病，暑傷氣而不傷形，故身熱疼重而脉反微弱；此與傷寒之脉緊者正相反。
傷寒論·辨痓濕暍脉證第四 Read in context →
太陽中暍者，身熱疼重，而脉微弱，此亦夏月傷冷水，水行皮中所致也。 太阳中暍者，身热疼重，而脉微弱，此亦夏月伤冷水，水行皮中所致也。
tài yáng zhòng yē zhě shēn rè téng zhòng ér mài wēi ruò cǐ yì xià yuè shāng lěng shuǐ shuǐ xíng pí zhōng suǒ zhì yě
In taiyang heatstroke with fever, heavy and painful body and a faint, weak pulse, the cause is likewise injury by cold water in summer, so that water spreads through the skin.
暍之為病，暑傷氣而不傷形，故身熱疼重而脉反微弱；此與傷寒之脉緊者正相反。
傷寒論·辨痓濕暍脉證第四 Read in context →
太陽中暍者，發熱惡寒，身重而疼痛，其脉弦、細、芤、遲，小便已，灑灑然毛聳，手足逆冷，小有勞，身即熱，口開，前板齒燥。 太阳中暍者，发热恶寒，身重而疼痛，其脉弦、细、芤、迟，小便已，洒洒然毛耸，手足逆冷，小有劳，身即热，口开，前板齿燥。
tài yáng zhòng yē zhě fā rè wù hán shēn zhòng ér téng tòng qí mài xián xì kōu chí xiǎo biàn yǐ sǎ sǎ rán máo sǒng shǒu zú nì lěng xiǎo yǒu láo shēn jí rè kǒu kāi qián bǎn chǐ zào
In taiyang heatstroke with fever and aversion to cold, a heavy aching body and a pulse that is wiry, thin, hollow and slow, the patient shivers with bristling hair after passing urine, has cold hands and feet, and grows hot on the least exertion, with the mouth held open and the front teeth dry.
暍之為病，暑傷氣而不傷形，故身熱疼重而脉反微弱；此與傷寒之脉緊者正相反。

Compounds built on this term

太陽中暍
tài yáng zhòng yē
taiyang struck by heat
辨痓濕暍脉證第四
中熱者暍
zhòng rè zhě yē
being struck by heat is heatstroke
辨痓濕暍脉證第四
痓濕暍
chì shī yē
spasm, dampness and heatstroke
辨痓濕暍脉證第四

How it has been translated

Every rendering below is a decision about which reader is being addressed. There is no neutral option.

This siteheatstrokekeeps the disease apart from the season
Literalsun-struckexact, and says nothing of the pulse
Clinicalsummerheat affectionclear to a practitioner, longer as a headword

Entry status

Review pending — who reviews this?

2026-10-28

Search the glossary

Reading path

Guided routes through the corpus, each built on a handful of chapters and their key terms.

See all reading paths