A poultice is a soft, warm mixture spread on cloth and pressed against the skin to help heal wounds, reduce swelling, or ease pain. Think of it as an old-fashioned medical treatment, used long before modern medicine, that draws out infection or soothes sore spots.

A traditional poultice might be made from mashed herbs, bread soaked in milk, or even clay mixed with water. The warm, moist mixture gets spread on a bandage or cloth, then placed directly on the injury. As it sits there, the heat and moisture work together to bring blood flow to the area and draw out infection, kind of like how a warm bath can soothe sore muscles.

You might encounter poultices in historical novels or pioneer stories, where a character uses a mustard poultice for chest congestion or a bread poultice for an infected cut. While doctors today have better medicines, poultices were genuinely helpful remedies for centuries. Some people still use them, particularly clay poultices for bee stings or splinters.

The word can also be used as a verb: to poultice a wound means to treat it with a poultice.