wound

Pluralwounds

Formswounds, wounding, wounded

1. 1
   nouncountable

   An injury to the body, especially one in which the skin is cut, pierced, torn, or broken open, as by a knife, bullet, or blow.

   The medic dressed the wound before moving the injured man to safety.

   Several wounds covered his arms after the fall from the cliff.

   UsageRhymes with tuned, unlike wound as the past of wind, which rhymes with sound.

   Similarinjury, cut, gash

   Note

   It names a particular opening in the body, such as a head wound or a cut that still bleeds freely, as in Stevenson's Treasure Island. That makes it more specific than injury. A wound is something you dress, treat and heal, and Shakespeare's blood raining 'from the wounds of slaughtered Englishmen' shows how long it has carried that weight. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

   • Robert Louis Stevenson wrote Treasure Island. gutenberg.org
   • Treasure Island describes a wound that still bleeds freely. gutenberg.org
   • Shakespeare uses the quoted words in Richard II, Act III, scene III; Bolingbroke speaks them. gutenberg.org
2. 2
   injureverbtransitive

   To cause an injury in which someone's skin is cut, pierced, or torn.

   The blast could wound everyone standing near the doorway.

   A stray bullet wounded two bystanders during the robbery.

   UsageOften passive with in for the body part: wounded in the leg; also shoot to wound.

   Similarhurt, injure, harm

   Oppositeheal

   Note

   The verb is narrower than its near-synonyms harm and damage. To wound is to break the skin, whether by blade, bullet or blast, so a person can be harmed without being wounded. It reports the injury rather than the motive behind it. Compare the feelings sense, where nothing physical is broken.

3. 3
   WOWND/waʊnd/

   twisted roundverb

   Simple past and past participle of wind.

   The narrow road wound through the valley for several miles.

   She had wound the bandage too tightly around his arm.

   UsageRhymes with sound, unlike the injury word, which rhymes with tuned.

   Note

   This wound has nothing to do with injury. It is the past of wind, the verb of turning and coiling, and comes from a separate origin. Baroness Orczy's comforter 'wound closely round his mouth and neck' shows the coiling sense plainly. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

   • The injury word has a different origin, descending from Old English wund. en.wiktionary.org
   • Wind, meaning to turn or coil, descends from Old English windan. en.wiktionary.org
   • The quoted wording occurs in Baroness Orczy's The Case of Miss Elliott, in 'The Fate of the Artemis'; the speaker is the man in the corner. gutenberg.net.au
4. 4
   emotional painnounfigurativelycountable

   An injury to someone's feelings, standing, or prospects, or to some other nonphysical interest.

   The betrayal left a wound that no apology could ever heal.

   Public criticism can inflict lasting wounds on a young artist's confidence.

   UsageWounds heal or reopen, and can be inflicted on someone: old family wounds.

   Similarscar, hurt, injury, blow, trauma

   Note

   Here the body's injury is carried over to the mind. An insult, a betrayal or a public rebuff leaves a wound, and the language of flesh comes with it: such wounds take time to get over, and they heal or fail to heal. Keeping that physical vocabulary nearby is what keeps the figure alive. Without it, a wound of this kind is simply a hurt.

5. 5
   hurt feelingsverbtransitive

   To hurt a person's feelings.

   Thoughtless remarks can wound even the closest of friends.

   His sister's sharp criticism wounded him more than he admitted.

   UsageOften passive or as wounding: his pride was wounded, a wounding remark; the object is often pride or feelings.

   Similarhurt, offend, insult, slight, affront

   Oppositecomfort

   Note

   It sits close to hurt. Affront is the sharper neighbor, implying a deliberate slight, whereas a person can be wounded by mere neglect.

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