12495
My dictionary says they are both cure/fix, so I am wondering what the
difference is and how to use them?

Is it an active/passive difference, or transitive/intransitive? Or just a
subtle nuance? I couldn't find a good example of usage.

I found [this](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/70/what-is-the-
difference-in-nuance-and-usage-of-the-two-kanji-forms-
for-%E3%81%AA%E3%81%8A%E3%81%99-naosu) question, but it just refers to the
different kanji, not the different words.

Thanks
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-08-07T00:25:38.580
12493
2014-11-18T04:55:49.043
2017-04-13T12:43:44.260
-1
3501
question
words nuances word-choice
What's the difference between 治す{なおす} and 治る{なおる}?
transitive/intransitive difference.

> 風邪 **を** 治す。  
>  I'll cure my cold.
>
> 風邪 **が** 治る。  
>  my cold will be cured.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-08-07T00:42:56.390
12494
2013-08-07T00:42:56.390
1065
12493
answer
`治す` is transitive.

> 傷を治す  
>  to heal a wound
>
> ほとんどの病気は薬を使わずに治すことができる。  
>  Most ailments can be cured without medicine.

`治る` is intransitive.

> 風邪が治った  
>  my cold got better
>
> 傷が治らないので、私はまた病院に行った。  
>  My wound did not heal, so I visited the hospital again.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-08-07T00:45:56.890
12495
2013-08-07T00:45:56.890
3010
12493
answer
It's almost exactly the same as the difference between 教わる and 教える, only in
this case English uses different words: "learn" and "teach".

The other answers give the correct grammatical explanation, but I think it
helps to see that this is not really a Japanese peculiarity, it's a curious
fact about English that in very many cases the same verb is used for the
entity receiving something and the entity giving the something.

In Japanese this distinction is shown by referring to 自動詞 ("self-acting"
verbs) and 他動詞 ("other-acting" verbs). Many J dictionaries show this after the
headword: for example, 新明解国語辞典, highly recommended, gives なおる【自五】 and なおす【他五】.
Those single characters may tell you all you need to know.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-11-17T09:17:50.243
19558
2014-11-17T09:17:50.243
7717
12493
answer