heal
gb/hˈil/ us/hˈil/
B1
Inglés
~ 8100
Acepciones
0 acepciones
Verbo
B1
action
1
for a wound or injury to recover
To get better after a cut or injury, when your body fixes itself.
Patrón de uso:
[a wound/injury/body part] heals
Error frecuente:
Learners sometimes say *"The doctor healed very fast"* when they mean *"The wound healed very fast"*. Use *heal* for the injury or body part, not the doctor, in this intransitive sense. Also, instead of *"My cold healed"*, it is more natural to say *"My cold went away"* or *"I got better"*; *heal* is more common for cuts, injuries, burns, and bones.
Sinónimos
mend (Often used for broken bones or things that are damaged; slightly less medical in tone.)
Antónimos
worsen (Describes an injury or condition becoming more serious instead of improving.)
Colocaciones
cut heals
|broken bone heals
|wound heals
|heal naturally
|heal slowly
|heal completely
Temas
health
|body
|daily life
|core_vocabulary
Ejemplos
- The cut on his hand healed quickly.
- Her broken ankle healed in about six weeks.
- If you keep scratching it, the wound will never heal.
- The burn has almost healed, but the skin is still sensitive.
- With rest, his shoulder finally healed enough for him to play again.
Ejemplos para estudiantes
- The small cut healed in a few days.
- Her leg needs more time to heal.
- Do not touch the scar while it heals.
- The doctor said the bone will heal well.
- My finger is still red, but it is healing.
Verbo
B1
action
2
make someone or something healthy again
To help a person or injury get better and become healthy again.
Patrón de uso:
[someone/something] heals [someone/an injury]
Error frecuente:
Learners sometimes overuse *heal* with illnesses and say *"The doctor healed my cold"*. It is more natural to say *"The doctor treated my cold"* or *"The doctor helped me get better"*. Use *heal* more often with injuries, cuts, burns, and broken bones.
Sinónimos
cure (Stronger idea of completely removing a disease; often used for illnesses, not usually for specific cuts or injuries.)
Antónimos
harm (Means to hurt or damage someone or something instead of making them better.)
Colocaciones
heal a wound
|heal an injury
|heal a broken bone
|help to heal
|doctor heals
|treatment heals
Temas
health
|medicine
|body
|core_vocabulary
Ejemplos
- The new treatment helped heal his damaged skin.
- The vet was able to heal the dog’s leg after the accident.
- This cream is designed to heal minor burns and cuts.
- Skilled surgeons can sometimes heal injuries that once caused permanent disability.
- Clean the area well to heal the infection more quickly.
Ejemplos para estudiantes
- The doctor healed her hand after the fall.
- This medicine will help heal your sore throat.
- A good diet can help heal your body.
- The nurse cleaned the cut to heal it faster.
- The vet healed the cat’s broken leg.
Verbo
B2
action
3
recover from emotional pain
To slowly feel okay again after a very sad or hurtful experience.
Patrón de uso:
[someone] heals (from [experience])
Error frecuente:
Learners sometimes say *"heal my heart"* in serious conversation, copying song lyrics. In real-life speech, people more often say *"I need time to heal"*, *"I’m still healing"*, or *"I’m trying to get over it"* rather than directly mentioning the heart.
Sinónimos
recover (A more general word for getting better; does not specifically suggest deep emotional repair.)
Antónimos
remain hurt (Describes staying in a painful emotional state instead of improving.)
Colocaciones
heal from trauma
|heal emotionally
|time to heal
|heal from a breakup
|heal from a loss
|process of healing
Temas
emotions
|mental health
|relationships
|health
|core_vocabulary
Ejemplos
- After the accident, it took her years to heal emotionally.
- He is still trying to heal from his parents’ divorce.
- Therapy helped him heal from his childhood experiences.
- The community is slowly healing from the tragedy.
- She needed time alone to heal before starting a new relationship.
Ejemplos para estudiantes
- She needs time to heal after the breakup.
- Counseling can help people heal from trauma.
- He is still healing from the loss of his father.
- The family is healing after the bad event.
- It may take a long time to heal inside.
Verbo
B2
action
4
repair a relationship or division
To fix a broken relationship or problem between people so they can be close or friendly again.
Patrón de uso:
[someone/something] heals [a relationship/a rift/divisions]
Error frecuente:
Learners sometimes confuse this with the very literal medical meaning and feel unsure if *heal* is correct with abstract nouns like *rift* or *divisions*. In modern English, it is natural to use *heal* to talk about repairing relationships or social problems.
Sinónimos
repair (A general word for fixing something; less emotional and less specific to relationships.)
Antónimos
widen (In this context, to make a division or conflict between people more serious instead of closing it.)
Colocaciones
heal a rift
|heal a relationship
|heal divisions
|heal the community
|heal old wounds
|heal the damage
Temas
relationships
|society
|emotions
|communication
|core_vocabulary
Ejemplos
- The apology helped heal the rift between the two friends.
- Leaders are working to heal the divisions in the country.
- It will take time to heal the damage caused by the scandal.
- The project brought neighbors together and helped heal the community.
- Honest conversation is needed to heal their relationship.
Ejemplos para estudiantes
- Her words helped heal the broken friendship.
- The family is trying to heal their relationship.
- The new leader wants to heal the split in the group.
- They met to heal the problem between them.
- It takes time to heal old hurts.
Gramática
Forma de diccionario
heal
AFI
GB/hˈil/
US/hˈil/
Sílabas y acento
heal (1 sílaba)
Stress on 1st syllable (heal)
Formas de la palabra
Verb
- Base: heal
- 3rd Person Singular: heals
- Present Participle: healing
- Past: healed
Familia de palabras
Expresiones
give it time to heal
1/ɡˈɪv ˈɪt tˈaɪm tə hˈil/
fixed phrase
allow time for recovery
To wait and not push too hard so something can get better.
Ejemplos
- You should avoid running and give it time to heal.
- The relationship might improve if you give it time to heal.
heal a rift
1/hˈil ə ɹˈɪft/
fixed phrase
repair a serious disagreement
To fix a big problem between people so they can be friendly again.
Ejemplos
- Their children helped heal the rift between them.
- The meeting was an attempt to heal a long-standing rift in the party.
heal from [something]
1/hˈil fɹˈʌm sˈʌmθɪŋ/
fixed phrase
recover after a specific event
To get better after a particular bad event, illness, or injury.
Ejemplos
- She is still trying to heal from the loss of her job.
- It can take a long time to heal from a serious operation.
heal itself
1/hˈil ɪtsˈɛlf/
fixed phrase
recover without outside help
When a body or system gets better on its own, without medicine or other help.
Ejemplos
- In many cases the body can heal itself.
- With less pollution, the river began to heal itself.
heal over
1/hˈil ˈoʊvɚ/
phrasal verb
new skin covers a wound
When new skin grows over a cut or injury.
Ejemplos
- The cut has started to heal over, but it is still a little sore.
- After a week, the wound finally healed over.
heal the wounds of [something]
1/hˈil ðə wˈundz əv sˈʌmθɪŋ/
idiom
reduce damage caused by something
To help people or a group feel better and return to normal after a bad event.
Ejemplos
- It will take years to heal the wounds of the civil war.
- The new policy aims to heal the wounds of past discrimination.
heal up
1/hˈil ˈʌp/
phrasal verb
for a wound to heal fully
When a cut or injury becomes fully better and closed.
Ejemplos
- The doctor said the stitches should heal up in about ten days.
- Keep it clean and the cut will heal up nicely.
time heals all wounds
1/tˈaɪm hˈilz ˈɔl wˈundz/
idiom
idea that time reduces emotional pain
A saying that means emotional pain will feel less strong after enough time has passed.
Ejemplos
- She told him that time heals all wounds and that one day he would feel better.
- People say time heals all wounds, but some losses never completely fade.
- He didn’t believe that time heals all wounds until he noticed he no longer thought about it every day.
time heals all wounds
2/tˈaɪm hˈilz ˈɔl wˈundz/
idiom
time reduces emotional pain
After some time, strong emotional pain usually feels less strong.
Ejemplos
- He told her that time heals all wounds, but she did not believe it yet.
- People often say that time heals all wounds, even after very hard experiences.