heal

Etymology 1

From Middle English helen, from Old English hǣlan (“to heal, cure, save, greet, salute”), from Proto-West Germanic *hailijan, from Proto-Germanic *hailijaną (“to heal, make whole, save”), from Proto-Indo-European *koyl- (“safe, unharmed”). Derived from the adjective at hand in whole. Cognates Cognate with Scots hale, hail (“to heal”), Saterland Frisian heila, heilen (“to heal”), West Frisian hielje, Dutch helen (“to heal”), German heilen (“to heal”), Danish hele, Swedish hela (“to heal”).

verb

1. (transitive) To make better from a disease, wound, etc.; to revive or cure.
   This bandage will help to heal your cut.
2. (intransitive) To become better or healthy again.
   Bandages allow cuts to heal.
3. (transitive, figurative) To reconcile, as a breach or difference; to make whole; to free from guilt.
   to heal dissensions
   English spelling, although unphonetic and antiphonetic, was inherited from our ancestors and has served magnificently in the glorious past. The weak spot in English spelling, however, can be easily healed with the global alphabet. 1945, United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Foreign Relations, Global Alphabet: Hearing Before the Committee..., page 69

noun

1. (roleplaying games, countable) A spell or ability that restores hit points or removes a status ailment.
   Also, various interesting spells have been added—for instance, with the Orb spell, you can circle a character, firing offensive bolts or casting heals, and free up a mage-type to cast other spells or even melee. 2004, Computer Gaming World, volumes 234-237, page 81
   The following macro checks whether our current target is friendly and casts a heal on it if so; otherwise it casts the heal on the target's target […] 2009, Paul Emmerich, Beginning Lua with World of Warcraft Add-ons, page 351
   Synner, a priest walking by, sees her struggling and casts a heal on her. 2012, Constance Steinkuehler, Kurt Squire, Sasha Barab, Games, Learning, and Society
2. (obsolete, uncountable) health

Etymology 2

See hele.

verb

1. (rare) Alternative form of hele (“conceal”).
   Heal, conceal and keep secret. 1907, John. H. Brownell, Arthur Maurice Smith, Joseph E. Morcombe, The American Tyler-Keystone: Devoted to Freemasonry, page 6
   'I swear before God and all these witnesses that I will always heal, conceal and never reveal any art or part of this secret of horsemanry which is to be revealed to me at this time or any other time hereafter.' 1998, Clive Richardson, The Horse Breakers, page 212
   The man in black asked Christopher for the secret passwords he'd been given and he answered correctly. As soon as he had, Christopher felt the point of a blade at his throat. “Do you swear to heal, conceal and never reveal the secrets of the witching arts for all your days[…]?" 2015, Lee Morgan, The Bones Would Do: Book Two of the Christopher Penrose Novels