cure
1 Americannoun
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a means of healing or restoring to health; remedy.
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a method or course of remedial treatment, as for disease.
- Synonyms:
- antidote, specific, restorative, remedy
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successful remedial treatment; restoration to health.
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a means of correcting or relieving anything that is troublesome or detrimental.
The administration is seeking a cure for inflation.
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the act or a method of preserving meat, fish, etc., by smoking, salting, or the like.
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spiritual or religious charge of the people in a certain district.
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the office or district of a curate or parish priest.
verb (used with object)
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to restore to health.
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to relieve or rid of something detrimental, such as an illness or a bad habit.
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to correct (a document, especially a mail-in ballot) in order to make it valid.
If the voter’s signature is missing, the county board sends them a certification form allowing the voter to cure the ballot so it can be counted.
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to prepare (meat, fish, etc.) for preservation by salting, drying, etc.
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to promote hardening of (fresh concrete or mortar), as by keeping it damp.
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to process (rubber, tobacco, etc.) as by fermentation or aging.
verb (used without object)
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to effect a cure.
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to become cured.
noun
plural
curésverb
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(tr) to get rid of (an ailment, fault, or problem); heal
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(tr) to restore to health or good condition
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(intr) to bring about a cure
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(tr) to preserve (meat, fish, etc) by salting, smoking, etc
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(tr)
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to treat or finish (a substance) by chemical or physical means
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to vulcanize (rubber)
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to allow (a polymer) to set often using heat or pressure
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(tr) to assist the hardening of (concrete, mortar, etc) by keeping it moist
noun
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a return to health, esp after specific treatment
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any course of medical therapy, esp one proved effective in combating a disease
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a means of restoring health or improving a condition, situation, etc
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the spiritual and pastoral charge of a parish
the cure of souls
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a process or method of preserving meat, fish, etc, by salting, pickling, or smoking
noun
Related Words
Cure, heal, remedy imply making well, whole, or right. Cure is applied to the eradication of disease or sickness: to cure a headache. Heal suggests the making whole of wounds, sores, etc.: to heal a burn. Remedy applies especially to making wrongs right: to remedy a mistake.
Other Word Forms
- cureless adjective
- curelessly adverb
- curer noun
- half-cured adjective
- overcured adjective
- semicured adjective
- uncured adjective
- well-cured adjective
Etymology
Origin of cure1
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, Old French noun cure, from Latin cūra “care”; verb derivative of the noun
Origin of curé2
1645–55; < French, Old French; modeled on Medieval Latin cūrātus parish priest; curate
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.
But he also stresses the treatment is not a cure, rather something they hope will help people in everyday life.
From BBC
"Prevention is better than cure, so this government is taking pressure off the NHS and building a healthier Britain where everyone lives well for longer."
From BBC
In return he tried to make their lives comfortable, learning to cure their ills, treating their cuts and bruises as his mother treated his, combing burrs and prickles from their woolly coats.
From Literature
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While there is currently no cure for Parkinson’s disease or Lewy body dementia, addressing depression early could improve quality of life and overall care for patients as these diseases develop.
From Science Daily
"The pothole pandemic needs a cure, but the minister does not seem to have one," he added.
From BBC
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.