contusion

[kuh n-too-zhuh n, -tyoo-]

See more synonyms for contusion on Thesaurus.com

noun

an injury, as from a blow with a blunt instrument, in which the subsurface tissue is injured but the skin is not broken; bruise.

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 for contusion

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

Examples from the Web for contusion

Historical Examples of contusion

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.
Manual of Surgery Volume Second: Extremities--Head--Neck. Sixth Edition.
Alexander Miles
Two horses were killed under him, and he received a contusion in the thigh.
Won by the Sword
G.A. Henty
It was at this juncture that he received the contusion, and became for some time senseless.
Soyer's Culinary Campaign
Alexis Soyer
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

an injury in which the skin is not broken; bruise

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

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).

contusion in Medicine

contusion

[kən-tōō′zhən]

An injury in which the skin is not broken, often characterized by ruptured blood vessels and discolorations; a bruise.