Standard Lemma guide

curative

adj · noun · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈkjʊɹ.ə.tɪv/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: K Y UH1 R AH0 T IH0 V Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Possessing the ability to cure, to heal or treat illness.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • The curative power of the antibiotics introduced in the 1950s was amazing at the time.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Remediative.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: broadly, figuratively

Examples

  • a curative jury instruction to disregard the sheriff's testimony

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

adj

Meaning 3

of a verb, conveying the meaning "the agent makes a patient do something"

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Topics: grammar, human-sciences, linguistics, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: causative

4

noun

Meaning 4

A substance that acts as a cure.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

adjective satellite

Meaning 5

tending to cure or restore to health

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • curative powers of herbal remedies
  • her gentle healing hand
  • remedial surgery
  • a sanative environment of mountains and fresh air
  • a therapeutic agent
  • therapeutic diets

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: healing(p), alterative, remedial, sanative, therapeutic

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

a medicine or therapy that cures disease or relieve pain

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: remedy, cure, therapeutic

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: medicine, medication, medicament, medicinal drug

Narrower terms: acoustic, antidote, counterpoison, emetic, vomit, vomitive, nauseant, lenitive, lotion, application, magic bullet, ointment, unction, unguent, balm, salve, palliative, alleviant, alleviator, panacea, nostrum, catholicon, cure-all, preventive, preventative, prophylactic

History

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French curatif.

Across languages

Translations

24 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bashkir: шифалы (şifalı) — possessing the ability to cure
  • Bashkir: дарыу (darıw) — possessing the ability to cure
  • Bulgarian: лечебен (lečeben) — possessing the ability to cure
  • Catalan: curatiu — possessing the ability to cure
  • Dutch: curatief — possessing the ability to cure
  • Faroese: lekjandi — possessing the ability to cure
  • Finnish: parantava — possessing the ability to cure
  • French: curatif — possessing the ability to cure
  • German: heilend — possessing the ability to cure
  • German: heilkräftig — possessing the ability to cure
  • Hungarian: gyógyító — possessing the ability to cure
  • Hungarian: gyógyhatású — possessing the ability to cure
  • Hungarian: gyógy- — possessing the ability to cure
  • Indonesian: kuratif — possessing the ability to cure
  • Italian: curativo — possessing the ability to cure
  • Māori: whakaoraora — possessing the ability to cure
  • Polish: leczniczy — possessing the ability to cure
  • Polish: kuracyjny — possessing the ability to cure
  • Portuguese: curativo — possessing the ability to cure
  • Sanskrit: भेषज (bheṣaja) — possessing the ability to cure
  • Spanish: curativo — possessing the ability to cure
  • Welsh: iachusol — possessing the ability to cure
  • Finnish: kuratiivinen — (grammar) of a verb, conveying the meaning "the agent makes a patient do something"
  • Polish: kuratywny — (grammar) of a verb, conveying the meaning "the agent makes a patient do something"