weal

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   welfare, prosperity, or the common good, now chiefly archaic or literary

   The council claimed that the measure served the public weal.

2. 2
   noun

   a raised line or mark on the skin caused by a blow, pressure, or irritation

   The tight rope left a red weal across his palm.

3. 3
   noun

   a benefit or blessing, in archaic use

   The new well proved a lasting weal to the village.

The welfare sense comes from Middle English wele, from Old English wela ("well-being, prosperity, wealth"), ultimately Germanic and related to well. The skin-mark sense is a spelling variant of wale and has a separate origin. The phrase weal and woe preserves the older welfare sense.

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