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massagist

 - 4 dictionary results

mas⋅sage

  [muh-sahzh, -sahj or, especially Brit., mas-ahzh] noun, verb, -saged, -sag⋅ing.
Use massagist in a Sentence
–noun
1. the act or art of treating the body by rubbing, kneading, patting, or the like, to stimulate circulation, increase suppleness, relieve tension, etc.
2. Slang. attentive or indulgent treatment; pampering: ego massage.
–verb (used with object)
3. to treat by massage.
4. Slang. to treat with special care and attention; coddle or pamper: The store massages its regular customers with gifts and private sales.
5. Informal.
a. to manipulate, maneuver, or handle skillfully: to massage a bill through the Senate.
b. to manipulate, organize, or rearrange (data, figures, or the like) to produce a specific result, esp. a favorable one: The auditors discovered that the company had massaged the books.
Origin:
1875–80; < F, equiv. to mass(er) to massage (< Ar massa to handle) + -age -age

Related forms:
mas⋅sag⋅er, mas⋅sag⋅ist, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Word Origin & History

massage  (n.)
1876, from Fr. massage "friction of kneading," from masser "to massage," possibly from Ar. massa "to touch, feel, handle;" if so, probably picked up in Egypt during the Napoleonic campaign there. Other possibility is that Fr. got it in colonial India from Port. amassar "knead," a verb from L. massa "mass, dough" (see mass (1)). The verb is attested from 1887. Masseur, fem. masseuse, both dating to 1876, are from Fr. masser. Massage parlor first attested 1913, from the start a euphemism for "house of prostitution."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 2massage
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: mas·saged; mas·sag·ing
: to treat by means of massage
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

massage mas·sage (mə-säzh' -säj')
n.
The rubbing or kneading of parts of the body for therapeutic purposes. v. mas·saged, mas·sag·ing, mas·sag·es

  1. To give a massage to.

  2. To treat by means of a massage.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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