- 1 an injury to part of the body, especially one in which a hole is made in the skin using a weapon a leg/head, etc. wound a bullet/knife/gunshot/stab wound an old war wound The nurse cleaned the wound. The wound healed slowly. He died from the wounds he had received to his chest. Synonymsinjurewound hurt bruise sprain pull strainThese words all mean to harm yourself or somebody else physically, especially in an accident.injure to harm yourself or somebody else physically, especially in an accident:He injured his knee playing hockey. Three people were injured in the crash.wound [often passive] (rather formal) to injure part of the body, especially by making a hole in the skin using a weapon:50 people were seriously wounded in the attack. Wound is often used to talk about people being hurt in war or in other attacks which affect a lot of people.hurt to cause physical pain to somebody/yourself; to injure somebody/yourself:Did you hurt yourself?injure or hurt?You can hurt or injure a part of the body in an accident. Hurt emphasizes the physical pain caused; injure emphasizes that the part of the body has been damaged in some way.bruise to make a blue, brown or purple mark (= a bruise) appear on the skin after somebody has fallen or been hit; to develop a bruisesprain to injure part of your body, especially your ankle, wrist or knee, by suddenly bending it in an awkward way, causing pain and swellingpull to damage a muscle, etc, by using too much forcestrain to injure yourself or part of your body by making it work too hard:Don’t strain your eyes by reading in poor light.Patterns to injure/hurt/strain yourself to injure/hurt/sprain/pull/strain a muscle to injure/hurt/sprain your ankle/foot/knee/wrist/hand to injure/hurt/strain your back/shoulder/eyes to injure/hurt your spine/neck to be badly/severely/slightly injured/wounded/hurt/bruised/sprained Wordfinderhurtbandage, bleed, bruise, fracture, hurt, injury, plaster, sore, swell, wound CollocationsInjuriesBeing injured have a fall/an injury receive/suffer/sustain a serious injury/a hairline fracture/(especially British English) whiplash/a gunshot wound hurt/injure your ankle/back/leg damage the brain/an ankle ligament/your liver/the optic nerve/the skin pull/strain/tear a hamstring/ligament/muscle/tendon sprain/twist your ankle/wrist break a bone/your collarbone/your leg/three ribs fracture/crack your skull break/chip/knock out/lose a tooth burst/perforate your eardrum dislocate your finger/hip/jaw/shoulder bruise/cut/graze your arm/knee/shoulder burn/scald yourself/your tongue bang/bump/hit/ (informal) bash your elbow/head/knee (on/against something)Treating injuries treat somebody for burns/a head injury/a stab wound examine/clean/dress/bandage/treat a bullet wound repair a damaged/torn ligament/tendon/cartilage amputate/cut off an arm/a finger/a foot/a leg/a limb put on/ (formal) apply/take off (especially North American English) a Band-Aid™/(British English) a plaster/a bandage need/require/put in/ (especially British English) have (out)/ (North American English) get (out) stitches put on/rub on/ (formal) apply cream/ointment/lotion have/receive/undergo (British English) physiotherapy/(North American English) physical therapy see also flesh wound Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivedeep, serious, severe, … verb + woundinflict, receive, suffer, … wound + verbclose, heal, bleed, … wound + nouncare, healing prepositionwound in, wound to See full entry See related entries: Injuries, Conflict
- 2 mental or emotional pain caused by something unpleasant that has been said or done to you After a serious argument, it can take some time for the wounds to heal. Seeing him again opened up old wounds. Word OriginOld English wund (noun), wundian (verb), of Germanic origin; related to Dutch wond and German Wunde, of unknown ultimate origin.Extra examples He died of gunshot wounds to the head. He had deep wounds in his chest. He had suffered multiple stab wounds to his chest. His old war wounds still ached in certain weathers. It was a clean wound, and it healed quickly. She suffered numerous slash and puncture wounds to her arms and upper body. The President’s self-inflicted wounds have called his credibility into question. The animal died from an infected wound. The exit wound made by the bullet was much larger than the entry wound. They say that time heals all wounds. a fatal gunshot wound He proudly showed us his war wounds. She survived, despite receiving severe stab wounds. The nurse cleaned the wound.Idioms
to spend time trying to get your strength or confidence back after a defeat or disappointment Leeds are still licking their wounds after their humiliating defeat by Grimsby.
to remind somebody of something unpleasant that happened or existed in the past His comments have served only to reopen old wounds.
to make a difficult experience even more difficult for somebody
Check pronunciation: wound
