heal
Americanverb (used with object)
-
heals,
present (3rd person singular)
-
healed,
past participle, past
-
healing
present participle
-
to make healthy, whole, or sound; restore to health; free from ailment.
- Antonyms:
- irritate
-
to bring to an end or conclusion, as conflicts between people or groups, usually with the strong implication of restoring former amity; settle; reconcile.
They tried to heal the rift between them but were unsuccessful.
- Antonyms:
- irritate
-
to free from evil; cleanse; purify.
to heal the soul.
verb (used without object)
-
heals,
present (3rd person singular)
-
healed,
past participle, past
-
healing
present participle
-
to effect a cure.
-
(of a wound, broken bone, etc.) to become whole or sound; mend; get well (often followed by up orover ).
noun
verb
-
to restore or be restored to health
-
(intr; often foll by over or up) (of a wound, burn, etc) to repair by natural processes, as by scar formation
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(tr)
-
to treat (a wound, etc) by assisting in its natural repair
-
to cure (a disease or disorder)
-
-
to restore or be restored to friendly relations, harmony, etc
Synonym Usage
See cure.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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healernoun
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healingnoun
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prehealverb (used with object)
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half-healedadjective
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healableadjective
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unhealableadjective
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unhealedadjective
-
well-healedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
healsimple
-
healssimple
-
have healedperfect
-
has healedperfect
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am healingprogressive
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are healingprogressive
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is healingprogressive
-
have been healingperfect progressive
-
has been healingperfect progressive
Past
-
healedsimple
-
had healedperfect
-
was healingprogressive
-
were healingprogressive
-
had been healingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of heal
First recorded before 900; Middle English helen, Old English hǣlan (cognate with Dutch helen, German heilen, Old Norse heila, Gothic hailjan ), derivative of hāl hale 1, whole
Explanation
To heal is to recover or become healthy again. You'll need to wait until your blisters heal before you put your hiking boots back on and climb Mt. Everest. They say time can heal, or cure, a broken heart, while you can be sure that rest, an ice pack, and propping your foot up will heal your twisted ankle. The Proto-Germanic word khailaz, which means "to make whole" is the root of both heal and the closely related word health. Don't confuse heal with heel, which is the back part of your foot or the command that makes a dog stop.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Gretta and Dan are seemingly brought together by fate to heal one another.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026
At a store selling harmonic healing devices, I watched a man cradle a swaddled Chihuahua within a 9-foot-tall golden pyramid structure in an attempt to heal the dog’s vertigo.
From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026
The good news is that researchers are developing therapies that do what was once thought impossible: regenerate cartilage, boost the knee’s natural ability to heal, and prevent cartilage breakdown in the first place.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026
Maybe Elizabeth Holmes can still heal the world, after all.
From Salon ● Sep. 9, 2026
“Yes. Another stolen child. A fellow slave. She helped me heal and helped me forgive, and when the time came, she helped me leave.”
From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack
Tyndale introduced the English people to a God who eats with sinners, heals the sick and comforts the grief-stricken: a loving God on a mission to rescue mankind.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 26, 2026
From there, activists could demand almost whatever they want: action on climate change, an end to mass surveillance and ICE raids, or an equitable health system that heals instead of mangles.
From Salon ● Dec. 11, 2025
In 1986, an article in the New Journal of Medicine by Dr. Harold Dvorak suggested that cancer behaves very much like a wound that never heals.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 10, 2025
However, time heals things, and grace is always beautiful in life.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2025
This bush has poisonous berries, yet its wood often heals wounds that nothing else will.
From "Island of the Blue Dolphins" by Scott O'Dell
He had said it was how he had healed his PTSD.
From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026
"What is remarkable is that the injuries healed well, which suggests they had access to advanced medical care for their time."
From Science Daily ● Aug. 30, 2026
"If those wounds are not healed it can have a really detrimental impact, not only on the people concerned but also on the reputation of the institution."
From Barron's ● Aug. 23, 2026
For Jeff Edwards, the last child to be pulled alive from his classroom when a colliery spoil tip struck a primary school in Aberfan, the physical injuries healed but the psychological scars never did.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
The burn was mostly healed, but echoes of the pain came back if she got too close to heat.
From "Out of Darkness" by Ashley Hope Pérez
Cramer, I knew, believed in the healing power of meditation.
From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026
The researchers found evidence that the treatment triggered a much broader healing response.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 22, 2026
They are also hand-watering the trees to reduce environmental stress and give them a better chance of healing, she said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026
Some recited Whanki's essays, while a local shaman performed a "healing ritual".
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
Anya pulled her hand back and watched Ivan suffer through the woman’s healing.
From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
