bruise
noun · verb
Simple meaning
A purplish mark on the skin due to leakage of blood from capillaries under the surface that have been damaged by a blow.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
broozIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈbɹuz
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A purplish mark on the skin due to leakage of blood from capillaries under the surface that have been damaged by a blow.
A dark mark on fruit or vegetables caused by a blow to the surface.
verb
transitive
To strike (a person), originally with something flat or heavy, but now specifically in such a way as to discolour the skin without breaking it; to contuse.
transitive
To damage the skin of (fruit or vegetables), in an analogous way.
intransitive
Of fruit or vegetables, to gain bruises through being handled roughly.
Hurt the feelings of
transitivefigurative
To harm or injure somebody's feelings or self-esteem.
intransitive
To fight with the fists; to box.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient
- Frequency
- Rare
- Typical Use
- Primarily written
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A purplish mark on the skin due to leakage of blood from capillaries under the surface that have been damaged by a blow.
Used this way, bruise is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use bruise
- “The customer bruised the strawberries by squeezing them.”verb
Share your sentence
Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Use This Word
See how this word sounds in a real sentence.
Ask Vocabaura
Understand the word your way.
What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Use it yourself
Knowing “bruise” starts when you use it. Pick a next step, all free.
Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.