Definition

1. Verb (transitive):

   • To make healthy again; to cure: To restore to health or soundness, especially from injury or disease.
   • To repair or reconcile; to set right: To alleviate or end (emotional distress or discord).

2. Verb (intransitive):

   • To become healthy or whole again; to mend: To return to a sound or healthy state, especially of a wound or injury.

Usage and Examples

• Transitive Verb (to cure or repair):

  • Time will heal your broken heart. (Time will repair your emotional pain.)
  • The doctor's goal is to heal the patient completely. (The doctor's goal is to make the patient healthy again.)
  • The agreement helped to heal the rift between the two families. (The agreement helped to reconcile the disagreement.)

• Intransitive Verb (to become whole):

  • The cut on my finger healed in a few days. (The injury on my finger became whole again.)
  • Bones take longer to heal than skin. (Bones require more time to mend.)

Advanced Usage

• "To heal over/up": (for a wound) to close and form new skin.
  • Make sure the wound is clean so it can heal properly.
• "Healing process": the series of events by which the body repairs itself.
  • The healing process after surgery can be slow.

Variants and Related Words

• Healer (n): A person or thing that heals.
  • She is known as a spiritual healer.
• Healing (adj/n): Having the ability to cure; the process of becoming well.
  • The ointment has healing properties. (adj)
  • Emotional healing takes time. (n)

Synonyms

• Cure: To relieve of a disease or symptom.
• Mend: To repair or return to good condition.
• Recover: To return to a normal state of health.
• Remedy: To provide a solution for or relief from.

Phrasal Verbs / Common Combinations

• Heal over: (of a wound) To close up.
  • The scrape will heal over soon.
• Heal up: To recover completely from an injury.
  • His sprained ankle has finally healed up.

Related Idioms

• Time heals all wounds: Emotional pain lessens as time passes.
  • I know you're sad now, but remember, time heals all wounds.
• Physician, heal thyself: A criticism of someone who advises others but does not follow their own advice (from the Bible, Luke 4:23).
  • He gives investment advice but is in debt himself. Physician, heal thyself!

Verb

1. provide a cure for, make healthy again
   • The treatment cured the boy's acne
   • The quack pretended to heal patients but never managed to
2. get healthy again
   • The wound is healing slowly
3. heal or recover
   • My broken leg is mending