bruise

[brooz]

verb (used with object)

bruised, bruising 

1. to injure by striking or pressing, without breaking the skin.

   The blow bruised his arm. Her pinching bruised the peaches.

2. to injure or hurt slightly, as with an insult or unkind remark.

   to bruise a person's feelings.

3. to crush (drugs or food) by beating or pounding.

4. Metalworking.,  to injure the surface of (an ingot or finished object) by collision.

verb (used without object)

bruised, bruising 

1. to develop or bear a discolored spot on the skin as the result of a blow, fall, etc.

2. to become injured slightly.

   His feelings bruise easily.

noun

1. an injury due to bruising; contusion.

bruise

/ bruːz /

verb

1. (also intr) to injure (tissues) without breaking the skin, usually with discoloration, or (of tissues) to be injured in this way

2. to offend or injure (someone's feelings) by an insult, unkindness, etc

3. to damage the surface of (something), as by a blow

4. to crush (food, etc) by pounding or pressing

noun

1. a bodily injury without a break in the skin, usually with discoloration; contusion

Other Word Forms

• unbruised adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of bruise¹

before 900; Middle English bro ( o ) sen, bres ( s ) en, bris ( s ) en, bruisen, representing Old English brȳsan, brēsan and Anglo-French bruser, Old French bruisier, akin to briser to break; brisance

Word History and Origins

Origin of bruise¹

Old English brӯsan , of Celtic origin; compare Irish brūigim I bruise

Example Sentences

Its leitmotif is push and pull: unsettling, bruising, often brutal, yet ultimately life-affirming.

From BBC

They had a bruising year in 2024, and found themselves in an unlikely position: protecting their own incumbents from challengers seeking to oust them.

From Los Angeles Times

He sustained multiple serious injuries, according to the complaint filed in California’s Central District federal court on Aug. 25, including a fractured jaw, a punctured lung and a bruised collarbone.

From Los Angeles Times

I was taken to the hospital for scans but amazingly, I got away with cuts and bruises.

From BBC

The police report says the woman displayed “bruises on her arm which appeared fresh.”

From Salon

Related Words

• bang up 
• batter 
• blacken 
• crush 
• injure 
• mar 
• wound