heal

heal — verb

1. to become fully healthy again after being physically hurt or injured, or to caus

1.verbtransitive / intransitiveB1
Definition

to become fully healthy again after being physically hurt or injured, or to cause a physical injury to become healthy

Example

Kasia's knife cut was not deep, but the skin took over a week to heal.

intransitive: [injury] + heals

The nurse applied a special cream to help heal Darius's burn after the accident.

transitive: heal + object (burn / wound / skin)

Common collocations
  • heal a wound / cut / burn / injury / broken bone / scar
  • heal slowly / quickly / naturally / completely
  • heal on its own
Synonyms
  • cure

    used more for diseases and illnesses, while 'heal' is more for wounds and injuries

  • recover

    intransitive only; describes the person getting better, not the injury itself

  • mend

    more informal; often used for broken bones ('the bone mended')

  • get better

    general and informal; less specific to injuries

Antonyms
  • injure

    to cause physical harm

  • hurt

    to cause pain or injury

  • wound

    to cause a cut or injury to the skin or body

Grammar Patterns

heal + noun (wound / cut / injury / bone / burn)

[body part / injury] + heals (intransitive)

slow to heal

Usage Note

Frequently used intransitively with the injury or body part as subject ('the wound healed'). When transitive, the object is the injury itself ('heal a cut') rather than the person. For diseases, 'cure' is more common than 'heal'.

Common Mistakes

I need to heal my headache.
I need to get rid of my headache.
'heal' is not used for temporary aches or pains like headaches; it is used for cuts, burns, broken bones, and other injuries.
The medicine healed my father.
The medicine cured my father.' or 'The medicine helped my father heal.
'cure' is preferred for diseases; 'heal' focuses on the injury or wound itself.

2. if a damaged relationship, painful emotion, or difficult situation heals, it sto

2.verbtransitive / intransitiveB2
Definition

if a damaged relationship, painful emotion, or difficult situation heals, it stops causing suffering and returns to a peaceful state, or you heal it by making it return to a peaceful state

Example

The argument between Ezra and Kevin badly damaged their friendship, but it slowly healed over time.

intransitive: relationship + heals

Tamar went to see a counselor every week to help heal the pain of losing her job.

transitive: heal + pain / hurt / emotion

Common collocations
  • heal a relationship / friendship / rift / division / disagreement
  • heal the pain / hurt / anger / sadness
  • heal over time / with help
Synonyms
  • repair

    similar to 'heal' for relationships, but 'repair' suggests deliberate action while 'heal' suggests a natural process

  • resolve

    focuses on finding a solution to a disagreement, while 'heal' is more about emotional recovery

  • mend

    slightly more informal; often used for relationships ('mend a friendship')

  • soothe

    less intense; means to reduce pain or anger rather than make it fully go away

Antonyms
  • worsen

    to make a situation or emotion more painful

  • damage

    to cause harm to a relationship or situation

  • upset

    to make someone feel unhappy or worried

Grammar Patterns

[relationship / emotion] + heals (intransitive)

heal + noun (relationship / rift / pain / hurt / disagreement)

Usage Note

Subject can be a personal emotion ('her sadness healed'), a relationship between people ('their friendship healed'), or a disagreement ('the rift healed'). The transitive use often involves an action or third party helping to resolve the emotional situation. Not used for temporary everyday moods — 'heal' describes a deeper, longer process.

Common Mistakes

I need to heal my bad mood before dinner.
I need to get over my bad mood before dinner.
'heal' is too strong for temporary everyday emotions; use it for deeper emotional pain or long-lasting hurt.
She healed the friendship by herself.' (sounds unnatural)
She worked to heal the friendship by talking things through.
the transitive use typically needs a supporting action or process, not just a simple one-step fix.

Word family

  • healing
    adjectiveB2
  • healer
    nounB2
  • healed
    adjectiveB2
  • unhealed
    adjectiveC1
  • healable
    adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

All five words relate to returning to a healthy state, but they differ in focus. 'Heal' is most naturally used for wounds, cuts, burns, and broken bones — the injury itself becomes well. 'Cure' applies to diseases and illnesses; a doctor cures a patient of an illness, but the word is less common for a simple cut or bruise. 'Recover' is intransitive and focuses on the person's return to health ('she recovered from surgery'), not on the injury directly. 'Mend' works for broken bones and torn tissue but sounds slightly informal; it can also describe emotional healing ('mend a friendship'). 'Treat' is the action a medical professional performs ('the doctor treated the wound'), but treat does not guarantee the outcome — a treated wound still needs time to heal. For a burn: 'The nurse treated the burn, but it took two weeks to heal completely.'

heal ↗cure ↗recover ↗mend ↗treat ↗

Common collocations

Adverbs

Phrases

  • heal on its own
  • time heals

Prepositions

Etymology

Old EnglishProto-GermanicEnglish

The verb 'heal' comes from Old English 'hælan', meaning 'to make whole, sound, or well'. This word traces back to Proto-Germanic '*hailijaną', which is related to the adjective 'whole' (Old English 'hāl'). The same ancient root also gave us 'hale' (as in 'hale and hearty') and 'health'. The emotional sense — healing feelings or relationships — appeared in Middle English, extending the original physical meaning to less visible kinds of recovery.