# salve

> English word · Noun · IPA /sɑːv/ · frequency rank #36,747

## Definitions
1. An ointment, cream, or balm with soothing, healing, or calming effects.
2. Any remedy or action that soothes or heals.

## Etymology
From Middle English salve, from Old English sealf, from Proto-West Germanic *salbu, from Proto-Germanic *salbō, from Proto-Indo-European *solp-éh₂, from *selp- (“salve, ointment”).
Cognates
Cognate with Middle Low German salve (Danish salve, Dutch zalf), Old High German salba (German Salbe), Gothic 𐍃𐌰𐌻𐌱𐍉𐌽𐍃 (salbōns), Albanian gjalpë (“butter”), Sanskrit सर्पिस् (sarpís), Ancient Greek ἔλπος (élpos).

## Easily confused with
- **sav** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-sav)
- **SLE** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-sle)
- **same** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-same)
- **save** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-save)
- **sole** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-sole)
- **sane** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-sane)
- **sate** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-sate)
- **serve** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-serve)
- **scale** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-scale)
- **Steve** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-steve)
- **saved** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-saved)
- **solve** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-solve)
- **slave** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-slave)
- **sauce** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-sauce)
- **saves** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-saves)
- **shave** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-shave)
- **silva** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-silva)
- **stove** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-stove)
- **shale** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-shale)
- **shove** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salve-vs-shove)

## Common misspellings (6)
`aslve`, `salev`, `sallve`, `salvve`, `savle`, `ssalve`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/salve