cure
- 01 B1 Intermediate
v.to make someone healthy again after they have been ill.
v.to restore an individual to health or to eliminate a disease or its effects. Transitive, taking the person or the illness as the direct object.
Simple“The doctors managed to cure the patient after a long stay in the hospital.”
In context“While modern antibiotics can cure most bacterial infections, the rise of drug-resistant strains presents a significant challenge to global health systems.”
PitfallThe doctor cured to him. The doctor cured him.The verb 'cure' is transitive and takes a direct object without a preposition.
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
v.to treat food, like meat or fish, with salt or smoke so it lasts a long time.
v.to preserve meat, fish, or vegetable matter by salting, smoking, or drying to prevent decomposition.
Simple“Farmers used to cure ham in the winter to make it last all year.”
In context“The traditional method involves using a dry rub of salt and spices to cure the salmon before it is cold-smoked over oak chips.”
- 03 C1 Advanced
v.to let a material like glue, plastic, or concrete become hard and strong.
v.to allow a material to harden or toughen through a chemical process, often involving heat, pressure, or time.
Simple“You need to let the concrete cure for several days before you build on it.”
In context“The epoxy resin requires at least twenty-four hours to cure fully at room temperature before the structural integrity can be tested.”
UsageOften used as an intransitive verb describing the material's state change.
- 04 B1 Intermediate
n.a medicine or treatment that makes an illness go away.
n.a substance, treatment, or regimen that restores health or ends a disease.
Simple“Scientists are still searching for a cure for the common cold.”
In context“The discovery of a reliable cure for the virus transformed what was once a terminal diagnosis into a manageable condition.”
- 05 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.a way to solve a difficult problem.
n.a solution or remedy for a problematic situation or social ill.
Simple“Higher taxes are not always a cure for a country's economic problems.”
In context“The CEO proposed a complete restructuring as a cure for the company's declining productivity and low employee morale.”
“What’s the cure for everything in the school medical room?”
“Taking antiviral tablets for 8 to 12 weeks can cure more than 95% of cases.”
From Middle English cure, borrowed from Old French cure (“care, cure, healing, cure of souls”), from Latin cura (“care, medical attendance, cure”). Displaced native Old English hǣlu, but survived as heal.
From Middle English curen, from Old French curer, from Latin cūrāre. Partially displaced Old English ġehǣlan, whence Modern English heal.
From curiosity.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.