heal
v.v. to become healthy or strong again after an injury or illness. You can also use it to describe a person or a situation that feels better after a difficult time.
v. to restore to health or soundness; to repair or mend a physical injury or psychological trauma. Often used intransitively to describe the natural recovery process of the body.
The doctor says the broken bone will heal in six weeks.
It took several months for the deep cut on his leg to heal completely without leaving a scar.
While physical wounds often close quickly with proper care, emotional trauma can take years to heal, requiring patience and consistent support from loved ones.
From Middle English helen, from Old English hǣlan (“to heal, cure, save, greet, salute”), from Proto-West Germanic hailijan, from Proto-Germanic hailijaną (“to heal, make whole, save”), from Proto-Indo-European *kéh₂ilos (“healthy, whole”). Derived from the adjective at hand in whole. Cognates Cognate with Scots hale, hail (“to heal”), Saterland Frisian heila, heilen (“to heal”), West Frisian hielje, Dutch helen (“to heal”), German heilen (“to heal”), Danish hele, Swedish hela (“to heal”), and further Russian цели́ть (celítʹ, “to heal”), Polish calić (“to save”), Czech celit (“to heal”), Serbo-Croatian céliti (“to heal”).
See hele.
The verb can be used transitively (to heal someone) or intransitively (the wound heals).
The medicine healed his cold.The medicine cured his cold.Heal is typically used for injuries, wounds, or broken bones; cure is used for illnesses and diseases.