weal1
/wiːl
/(also chiefly Medicine wheal)
noun
1A red, swollen mark left on flesh by a blow or pressure: she slapped his cheek and a bright red weal sprang up on it...
- I sat in it once when they were picking tomatoes, my feet dangling, the ridge of the seat hurting my thighs, making red weals.
- Their idea of a fun Saturday afternoon is to go paintballing and end up covered in golfball-sized red weals from being shot at close range.
- You could always tell where she'd been in the school, you just followed the red weals on the legs of the kids.
Synonyms
welt, wound, lesion, swelling;
scar, cicatrix, mark, blemish, discoloration, pockmark
1.1 Medicine An area of the skin which is temporarily raised, typically reddened, and usually accompanied by itching.This causes inflammation and fluid to gather under the skin, causing wheals and the blood vessels to dilate....
- The wheals can itch, and they look like mosquito bites.
- A positive skin test was defined as a weal of at least 3 mm in any dimension.
verb [with object]
Mark with a weal: his neck was wealed and raw...
- The veterinary officer will report to the stewards after the race every horse which is wealed.
- After this the boy's bottom would have been wealed, but probably not much bruised.
Origin
Early 19th century: variant of wale, influenced by obsolete wheal 'suppurate'.
Rhymes
weal2
/wiːl/noun [mass noun] formal
That which is best for someone or something: I am holding this trial behind closed doors in the public weal...
- There is no way for a democratic regime to prevent the citizens from watching and participating in exchanges of ideas, even if these are often half-baked or biassed, and not aimed at public weal.
- This President has largely excused the rich and powerful from the onerous burden of lightening their wads a tiny bit for the public weal - with a resulting plunge in Treasury receipts.
- Positions of trust were designated to all members of this Parliament, singly and corporately, who were seen as guardians of the public weal.
Phrases
the common weal
Origin
Old English wela 'wealth, well-being', of West Germanic origin; related to well1.