Definition of Massage

1. Noun. Kneading and rubbing parts of the body to increase circulation and promote relaxation.


2. Verb. Manually manipulate (someone's body), usually for medicinal or relaxation purposes. "She rubbed down her child with a sponge"
Exact synonyms: Knead, Rub Down
Generic synonyms: Manipulate
Entails: Rub
Derivative terms: Massager, Rubdown

3. Verb. Give a massage to. "Did he massage his foot? "; "She massaged his sore back"
Generic synonyms: Care For, Treat
Derivative terms: Massager

Definition of Massage

1. n. A rubbing or kneading of the body, especially when performed as a hygienic or remedial measure.

2. v. t. To treat by means of massage; to rub or knead; as, to massage a patient with ointment.

Definition of Massage

1. Noun. The action of rubbing, kneading or hitting someone's body, to help the person relax, prepare for muscular action (as in contact sports) or to relieve aches. ¹

2. Verb. (transitive) To rub and knead (someone's body or a part of a body), to perform a massage on (somebody). ¹

3. Verb. (transitive) To manipulate (data, a document etc.) to make it more presentable or more convenient to work with. ¹

4. Verb. (transitive) To falsify (data or accounts). ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Massage

1. to manipulate parts of the body for remedial or hygienic purposes [v -SAGED, -SAGING, -SAGES]

Medical Definition of Massage

1. The systematic therapeutic friction, stroking and kneading of the body. Origin: Fr., Gr. Massein = to knead This entry appears with permission from the Dictionary of Cell and Molecular Biology (11 Mar 2008)

Literary usage of Massage

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. The Lancet (1898)
"Each case must be judged by itself ; the state of the tissues must in each instance tell when massage may be begun with safety ; It must always be carried ..."

2. The Practitioner by Gale Group, ProQuest Information and Learning Company (1894)
"The Value of massage.—In an introduction to a discussion on massage—surgical, medical, and gynecological—before the Edinburgh Medico-Chirurgical Society, ..."

3. The American Journal of the Medical Sciences by Southern Society for Clinical Investigation (U.S.) (1896)
"OF books and papers on massage there had seemed to be a lessening- We might ... We had inclined to the latter belief perhaps because massage was either a ..."

4. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease by American Neurological Association, Philadelphia Neurological Society, Chicago Neurological Society, New York Neurological Association, Boston Society of Psychiatry and Neurology (1886)
"Sifting further, we find that of all nervous affections it is in the general class of neuralgias that massage has received the greatest amount of attention, ..."

5. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease by Philadelphia Neurological Society, American Neurological Association, Chicago Neurological Society, New York Neurological Association (1886)
"PERIPHERAL affections of the nervous system can certainly be more beneficially influenced by massage than central ones ; indeed were it not for the truly ..."

6. The Popular Science Monthly (1882)
"There is, however, an increasing tendency on the part of scientific men to have the word " massage " embrace all these varied forms of manual therapeutics, ..."

7. Alternative Medicine: Expanding Medical Horizons by DIANE Publishing Company (1995)
"Several barriers and key issues need to be addressed to make research on massage therapy more productive: • Study design. A key issue related to research is ..."

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