concussion
Americannoun
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Pathology. injury to the brain or spinal cord due to jarring from a blow, fall, or the like.
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shock caused by the impact of a collision, blow, etc.
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the act of violently shaking or jarring.
noun
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a jarring of the brain, caused by a blow or a fall, usually resulting in loss of consciousness
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any violent shaking; jarring
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of concussion
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin concussiōn-, stem of concussiō “a shaking,” also “earthquake, extortion”; equivalent to concuss + -ion
Explanation
A concussion is a violent blow, especially to the head, that often injures the brain or causes a loss of consciousness — an all-too-frequent occurrence, unfortunately, in contact sports like football or boxing. First used around 1400, concussion originates from the Latin concussionem, which means "a shaking." Your brain certainly gets "a shaking" when you take a heavy blow to the head, which sometimes causes injury or permanent damage. It's not just people, though, who get concussions; a building can also suffer from a concussion during an earthquake.
Vocabulary lists containing concussion
"All Summer in a Day" by Ray Bradbury
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Drama
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Game Changer
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
In 2023, McConnell tripped, sustained a concussion, and was away from the Senate for nearly six weeks.
From Slate ● Jul. 2, 2026
Shoaib Bashir took two in an over and Jofra Archer one, as well as striking Blair Tickner with a blow that eventually ruled the seamer out of the match with concussion.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
Doctors used to worry almost exclusively about concussions, but most headers don’t produce a concussion diagnosis.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026
She didn’t have a concussion that time, but players do seem to be getting hit in the head at a higher rate.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 14, 2026
“Thankfully, the bump on my head was just a mild concussion, so I wasn’t hurt too bad.”
From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro
He has a facial tic that he blames on his concussions and a limp stemming from back problems.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
The “why” could be bad luck, better awareness in diagnosing concussions or something else.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 14, 2026
He sustained four concussions in six years, and met with doctors to see if he could continue his football career.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 9, 2026
Tagovailoa has said he contemplated retiring after suffering two concussions during the 2022 season, but returned to lead the league for passing yards in 2023, taking Miami into the play-offs.
From BBC ● Mar. 9, 2026
He told us about Mr. Terupt’s wrestling and concussions and it not being all Peter’s fault.
From "Because of Mr. Terupt" by Rob Buyea
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
