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wheal

 - 5 dictionary results

wheal

  [hweel, weel]
Use wheal in a Sentence
–noun
1. a small, burning or itching swelling on the skin, as from a mosquito bite or from hives.
2. a wale or welt.
Also, weal.

Origin:
bef. 900; akin to whelk 2 and to obs. wheal (v.), OE hwelian to suppurate, develop wheals
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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wheal   (hwēl, wēl)   
n.  A small swelling on the skin, as from an insect bite, that usually itches or burns.

[Probably alteration of wale.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

wheal 
"mark made on the skin by a whip," 1808, probably an alteration of wale, possibly by confusion with weal "welt," and obsolete wheal "pimple, pustule" (1440), from O.E. verb hwelian "to form pus, bring to a head."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: wheal
Pronunciation: 'hwE(&)l, 'wE(&)l
Function: noun
: a suddenly formed elevation of the skin surface: as a : WELT b : the transient lump occurring at the site of injection of a solution before the solution is normallydispersed c : a flat burning or itching eminence on the skin wheals>
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

wheal (wēl)
n.
A small swelling on the skin, as from an insect bite, that usually itches or burns. Also called welt.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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