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contusion

[kuh n-too-zhuh n, -tyoo-]
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noun
  1. an injury, as from a blow with a blunt instrument, in which the subsurface tissue is injured but the skin is not broken; bruise.
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Origin of contusion

1350–1400; Middle English (< Middle French) < Latin contūsiōn- (stem of contūsiō). See contuse, -ion
Related formscon·tu·sioned, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

swelling, wale, cut, knock, bump, wound, bang, mouse, discoloration

Examples from the Web for contusion

Historical Examples

  • And yet you had suckled that son, though your breast had had to be lanced owing to a contusion.

    Plutarch's Morals

    Plutarch

  • Contusion in this region, on the other hand, is not uncommon.

  • Two horses were killed under him, and he received a contusion in the thigh.

  • It was at this juncture that he received the contusion, and became for some time senseless.

  • There was quite a contusion near one temple and he was bleeding at the nose.

    Bound to Succeed

    Allen Chapman

British Dictionary definitions for contusion

contusion

noun
  1. an injury in which the skin is not broken; bruise
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Derived Formscontusioned, adjective
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for contusion

n.

c.1400, from Middle French contusion, from Latin contusionem (nominative contusio) "crushing, bruising," from contus-, past participle stem of contundere "to beat, break to pieces," from com-, intensive prefix (see com-), + tundere "to beat" (see obtuse).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
contusion in Medicine

contusion

(kən-tōō′zhən)
n.
  1. An injury in which the skin is not broken, often characterized by ruptured blood vessels and discolorations; a bruise.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.