curative

curative
curative, sanative, restorative, remedial, corrective are comparable when they mean returning or tending to return to a state of normalcy or health.
Curative is applicable to whatever effects or, sometimes, seeks or tends to effect a complete recovery especially from disease of body or of mind
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a curative drug

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curative regimens

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most medicines are alleviative in their action and not definitely curative. Rather, they overcome the symptoms of disease and give the patient a chance to recover— Morrison

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Sanative is a general term applicable to whatever is conducive either to the restoration of or the maintenance of health, whether of body and mind or of spirit or morals; the term often comes close to salutary in meaning
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the sanative virtue of action ... to dispel doubt and despair— Masson

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Restorative is occasionally applicable to what restores to health but more often to what revives someone unconscious or renews or refreshes someone or something overstrained or exhausted
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the restorative effect of rain on parched fields

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take a restorative drink before dinner

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that voyage proved entirely beneficial and restorativeEllis

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Remedial is much the broadest term of this group and like the related noun (see REMEDY n) and verb (see CURE vb) is applicable not only to whatever alleviates or cures disease or injury of body or mind but to whatever tends to relieve or correct a faulty or evil condition (as of the community, the law, or the body politic)
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while . . . the teacher's greatest contribution lies in the prevention of maladjustment, he must also assume a major responsibility in remedial work with the student who has become poorly adjusted—C. C. Duns moor & L. M. Miller

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whatever action the court takes towards a convicted offender ... is in fact a punishment; and it does not cease to be so because it may also be used as a form of remedial treatment, adapted to the personality of the offender and directed to his social rehabilitation— Fox

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with poverty and humility she overcame the world, and cast down the devil with prayer and remedial tears— H. O. Taylor

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the communities affected entered upon a patient course of remedial action and successfully labored to prevent a recurrence of these disorders— Handlin

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Corrective (compare CORRECTIVE ri) in many of its uses comes close to remedial, but, unlike the latter, it cannot ordinarily replace curative; specifically it applies to what is designed to restore something to a norm or standard or bring it up (or down) to a desirable level from which it has deviated. In this relation the term is peculiarly applicable to material objects that supplement or compensate for a defective function or part, but it may be used interchangeably with remedial in most contexts, though the emphasis may be more on making good a defect or deficiency than (as in remedial) on relieving the distress it causes; thus, one would speak of corrective (rather than remedial) shoes for the relief of weak ankles, but one could say that ampng remedial (or corrective) measures for weak ankles are shoes with special lifts in the soles
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constantly called upon their corrective lenses to decipher documents— Ace

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such corrective declines need not, necessarily, represent the end of this greatest of all bull markets— Van Loan

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there is today special need for the balancing and corrective sanity of not taking ourselves and our time over- seriously— Alain Locke

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Analogous words: healing, curing, remedying (see CURE vb)

New Dictionary of Synonyms. 2014.

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  • Curative — may refer to: Curative care, also called curative medicine, health care traditionally oriented towards seeking a cure for an existent disease or medical condition Curative petition, a legal petition specific to the India justice system that is a… …   Wikipedia

  • curative — cu·ra·tive / kyu̇r ə tiv/ adj: serving or intended to cure defects curative instructions to the jury Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996. curative …   Law dictionary

  • curative — (adj.) early 15c., from O.Fr. curatif (15c.) curative, healing, from L. curat , pp. stem of curare to cure (see CURE (Cf. cure) (v.)). As a noun, attested from 1857 …   Etymology dictionary

  • curative — ► ADJECTIVE ▪ able to cure disease. ► NOUN ▪ a curative medicine or agent …   English terms dictionary

  • Curative — Cur a*tive (k?r ? t?v), a. [Cf. F.curatif. See {Cure}, v. t.] Relating to, or employed in, the cure of diseases; tending to cure. Arbuthnot. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • curative — [adj] healing, health giving alleviative, beneficial, corrective, curing, healthful, helpful, invigorating, medicable, medicative, medicinal, pick me up*, remedial, remedying, restorative, salutary, sanative, shot in the arm*, therapeutic, tonic …   New thesaurus

  • curative — [kyoor′ət iv] adj. [ME < OFr curatif < ML curativus < L curatus, pp. of curare, to take care of < cura: see CURE] 1. of or for the curing of disease 2. curing, tending to cure, or having the power to cure n. a thing that cures; remedy …   English World dictionary

  • curative — adjective Date: 15th century relating to or used in the cure of diseases ; tending to cure < curative treatment > < curative powers > • curative noun • curatively adverb …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • curative — cu|ra|tive [ˈkjuərətıv US ˈkjur ] adj [Date: 1500 1600; : French; Origin: curatif, from Latin curare; CURE2] able to, or intended to cure illness →↑heal ▪ the spring s alleged curative properties >curative n ▪ This herb was once thought to be… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • curative — [[t]kjʊ͟ərətɪv[/t]] ADJ Something that has curative properties can cure people s illnesses. [FORMAL] Ancient civilizations believed in the curative powers of fresh air and sunlight. ...curative herbs. Syn: healing …   English dictionary

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