wound

¹ American  

[woond, wound] / wund, waʊnd /

noun

wounds plural

1. an injury, usually involving division of tissue or rupture of the integument or mucous membrane, due to external violence or some mechanical agency rather than disease.

   Synonyms:

   trauma, lesion, laceration, stab, cut

2. a similar injury to the tissue of a plant.

3. an injury or hurt to feelings, sensibilities, reputation, etc.

   Synonyms:

   anguish, pain, insult

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verb (used with object)

1. to inflict a wound upon; injure; hurt.

   Synonyms:

   lacerate, stab, cut, damage, harm

verb (used without object)

1. to inflict a wound.

idioms

1. lick one's wounds, to attempt to heal one's injuries or soothe one's hurt feelings after a defeat.

wound ² American  

[wound] / waʊnd /

verb

1. a simple past tense and past participle of wind and wind.

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wound ¹ British  

/ wuːnd /

noun

1. any break in the skin or an organ or part as the result of violence or a surgical incision

2. an injury to plant tissue

3. any injury or slight to the feelings or reputation

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verb

1. to inflict a wound or wounds upon (someone or something)

wound ² British  

/ waʊnd /

verb

1. the past tense and past participle of wind 2

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wound More Idioms  

1. see lick one's wounds; rub in (salt into a wound).

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Synonym Usage

See injury.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• wounder
  noun
• woundable
  adjective
• wounding
  adjective
• woundless
  adjective
• woundedly
  adverb
• woundingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• wounds
  plural

Etymology

Origin of wound

First recorded before 900; (noun) Middle English; Old English wund; cognate with Old High German wunta ( German Wunde ), Old Norse und, Gothic wunds; (verb) Middle English wounden, Old English wundian, derivative of the noun

Explanation

A wound is a serious injury, especially a deep cut through the skin. But things like pride and feelings can also get wounded. Wounds are serious: we're talking a lot worse than just a scrape or booboo. Just about all the meanings of this word have to do with being hurt. If you got stabbed, you got a stab wound. Soldiers in battle get a lot of wounds from enemies. If someone told you to shut up, they might wound your feelings. If you slipped in a puddle in front of your friends, that might wound your pride.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

wound wounds

Proponents offer sweeping claims about their benefits, ranging from glowing skin and muscle growth to brain health and wound healing.

From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026

It’s mostly used for wound healing and skin health and to address other inflammatory conditions.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 23, 2026

Fewer still emerged from Okinawa without a physical wound.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026

"When I stopped, a policeman came to my car door. I wound down the window, and he told me to open my car, so I did."

From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026

His wound is leaking a foul-smelling liquid, a sure sign of infection.

From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman

Video footage taken shortly before her capture showed her sparring with two younger eagles, but exams revealed no wounds or broken bones.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026

Either way, reluctance to associate either Salinger or his most indelible creation with crazed murderers meant keeping their own wounds at arms’ length.

From Salon ● Jul. 25, 2026

Taking a novelist’s care with his protagonists, Mr. Aris shows how they developed starkly different personalities from childhood wounds.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026

Tuchel has self-inflicted wounds because of his selection of two players with a history of injury problems in Tino Livramento and Reece James.

From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026

Basil insisted on taking Constance to the infirmary to have her wounds treated.

From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques

Related Words

• bruise
• cut
• damage
• grief
• laceration
• lesion
• pain
• shock
• trauma