salve

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“
The odour of the herb in the salve is as strong as if it had been prepared yesterday She laid the first bandage on Hermon's eyes with her own weak fingers, at the same time muttering an incantation; but it did not seem to satisfy her.

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Definitions (27)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (6)

  1. noun An analgesic or medicinal ointment.
  2. noun Something that soothes or heals; a balm.
  3. noun Flattery or commendation.
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Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (12)

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Examples (50)

  • The infinitesimal amount which would pass into the mouth after the application of the salve was calculated to produce for an hour or two the effects you have described, without otherwise doing any harm. —  Magazine - Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine - 2007 - Issue 03 - March
  • Swearing at himself, Dominique got up to get ice, salve, and bandages. —  F ;SF; - vol 091 issue 04-05 - October-November 1996
  • I furnished the poor man with healing salve, and tried to persuade him to rest a few days until he would be able to work; but no, he must see Canada before he could feel safe. —  A Woman's Life-Work
  • Taken both internally and as a salve, his nostrums reduced fevers, knitted broken bones, cured heartsickness, took away all pain, even in hopeless cases, Jeremy thought. —  FSF,October2007
  • The night before, he had discovered in its darkening interior a transparent jar of salve, the label of which said: BEARD REMOVER—RUB ON, THEN WASH OFF. —  Astounding, January 1943
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This word has been looked up 133 times.

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Etymologies (7)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (2)

  1. Middle English, from Old English sealf.
  2. Back-formation from salvage or salvable.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (5)

  1. from Middle English salve, sealve, older salfe, from Anglo-Saxon sealf = Old Saxon salbha = Dutch zalf = Middle Low German salve = Old High German salba, Middle High German G. salbe = Swedish salfva = Danish salve = Gothic (Moesogothic) *salba (indicated by the derived verb salbōn), salve; prob. = Sanskrit sarpis, clarified butter, so called from its slipperiness, from √ sarp, glide: see serpent.
  2. from Middle English salven, from Anglo-Saxon sealfian = Old Saxon salbhon = OFries. salva = Dutch zalven = Middle Low German Low German salven = Old High German salbōn, salpōn, Middle High German G. salben = Swedish salfva = Danish salve = Gothic (Moesogothic) salbōn, anoint with salve; from the noun. In the fig. uses the word seems to have been confused with salve, an old form of save.
  3. A particular use of salve for save, in part a back formation from salvage: see salvage, salve, save.
  4. Latin salve, hail, imperative of salvere, be well, from salvus, sound, safe: see safe. Cf. salute.
  5. from salve, interj.
 

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/ˈsælvi/
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