Something soft and soothing rubbed onto a sore place. It does not take the wound away; it takes the sting out of the surface — while healing happens underneath, or while nothing happens underneath at all.

可以想成在痛的地方抹上一層軟軟的藥膏。它不會讓傷口消失,只是讓表面不那麼痛。salve 的每個用法都留著這個味道:先讓那個痛好過一點,至於底下的問題有沒有解決,要看情況。

From the word’s history

An old English word: Old English sealf, from Proto-Germanic salbo, with the verb sealfian beside it. German still has Salbe today, and the meaning has been 'ointment' all along.

很老的英文字:古英文 sealf,來自原始日耳曼語 *salbō,旁邊還有動詞 sealfian(抹藥)。德文今天的 Salbe 就是同一個字,意思從頭到尾都是「藥膏」。

Wiktionary extract supplied in packet (kaikki:3f6f69a190036ae4:868497902 and :868516702): Middle English salve < Old English sealf < Proto-Germanic *salbō; verb from Old English sealfian; cognate German Salbe.

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