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
-
(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
-
healernoun
-
healingnoun
-
prehealverb (used with object)
-
half-healedadjective
-
healableadjective
-
unhealableadjective
-
unhealedadjective
-
well-healedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
healsimple
-
healssimple
-
have healedperfect
-
has healedperfect
-
am healingprogressive
-
are healingprogressive
-
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:
In 2016 Clare experienced a tear which did not heal.
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2026
Female mice heal skin wounds faster than males, and scientists have uncovered a surprising biological difference that may help explain why.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 18, 2026
“You can heal from a lung tumor,” Dr. Lorenzo Spaggiari, a thoracic surgical oncologist at the European Institute of Oncology in Milan, told the New York Times.
From Salon ● Oct. 13, 2026
Drug companies test medications to heal people, not kill them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026
“Well, maybe. Broken leg didn’t heal right. Didn’t imagine you’d notice. Most don’t.”
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
If I could boil my formula for the future of dementia care into two words, it would be this: Hope heals.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 20, 2026
“And you have to give space for it because you can’t make it go away. ... They always say time heals, but time makes everything just a little less intense.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 18, 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
“And if it heals properly we’ll surprise her with the good news.”
From "Dead End in Norvelt" by Jack Gantos
At the Shrine, though, each song was still a startling feat of storytelling — a raw wound that somehow hadn’t healed at all.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026
When his elbow healed, he dominated at the plate and on the mound in ways not even Babe Ruth could have imagined.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026
Women have told us they have sought medical help back in the UK, because scarring has not healed properly and they have been in pain.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
By day 24, 80% of the mice treated with ABT-263 had completely healed wounds.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 23, 2026
But the scratches and bruises were long healed, and all her own statements at the time were to the contrary.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
“Being able to share some of the healing parts of our story, I think, is kind of our responsibility,” Laura Lentz says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2026
Families speak about the healing power of nature and how some have created dedicated green spaces at home.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026
I know it sounds treacly, but it was really healing to work with him again.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026
The study, "Vanillin as a bioactive component in biomedical formulations for chronic wound healing and tissue regeneration," was conducted by Borislav Stoilov, Vi Khanh Truong, Christopher Delaney, and Krasimir Vasilev.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 12, 2026
Abel awoke early in the morning, a new mouse after his second spell of healing slumber.
From "Abel's Island" by William Steig
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