body image

noun

1. an intellectual or idealized image of what one's body is or should be like that is sometimes misconceived in such mental disorders as anorexia nervosa.

body image

noun

1. psychol an individual's concept of his or her own body

Word History and Origins

Origin of body image¹

First recorded in 1930–35

Example Sentences

"I think there's an unprecedented pressure," Dr Kirsty Garbett, a body image expert from the Centre of Appearance Research at the University of West England, explains.

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Dare, who is worried about how social media would affect her daughter’s body image, hasn’t granted the 13-year-old’s requests, but it was tough to withstand the constant pressure.

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"Some told us how they started comparing their body image to people online, how video games and social media distracted from their learning," she said.

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Last year she helped launch a cancer podcast, Radio Therapy, which covered themes including mental health, body image and mortality.

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Elsewhere, Life is Strange and Rage and Bloom have woven the realities of teenage life and womanhood - from periods to sexuality and body image - into their wider narratives.

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