PIMPLE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does pimple mean? 

• PIMPLE (noun)
  The noun PIMPLE has 1 sense:

1. a small inflamed elevation of the skin; a pustule or papule; common symptom in acne

  Familiarity information: PIMPLE used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• PIMPLE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A small inflamed elevation of the skin; a pustule or papule; common symptom in acne

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Synonyms:

hickey; pimple; zit

Hypernyms ("pimple" is a kind of...):

acne (an inflammatory disease involving the sebaceous glands of the skin; characterized by papules or pustules or comedones)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "pimple"):

papule (a small inflamed elevation of skin that is nonsuppurative (as in chicken pox))

pustule (a small inflamed elevation of skin containing pus; a blister filled with pus)

Derivation:

pimply ((of complexion) blemished by imperfections of the skin)

 Context examples 

Most pimples form on the face, neck, back, chest, and shoulders.

(Acne, NIH: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)

She was sure it was very ill—it cried, and fretted, and was all over pimples.

(Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen)

It was long, whitish, and blotched with pimples, the nose flattened, and the lower jaw projecting, with a bristle of coarse whiskers round the chin.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

A disorder characterized by an eruption consisting of papules (a small, raised pimple) and pustules (a small pus filled blister), typically appearing in face, scalp, and upper chest and back Unlike acne, this rash does not present with whiteheads or blackheads, and can be symptomatic, with itchy or tender lesions.

(Papulopustular Rash, NCI Thesaurus/CTCAE)

The nipple was about half the bigness of my head, and the hue both of that and the dug, so varied with spots, pimples, and freckles, that nothing could appear more nauseous: for I had a near sight of her, she sitting down, the more conveniently to give suck, and I standing on the table.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)

Acne is a common skin disease that causes pimples.

(Acne, NIH: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)

Another common myth is that dirty skin causes acne; however, blackheads and pimples are not caused by dirt.

(Acne, NIH: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)

Pimples form when hair follicles under your skin clog up.

(Acne, NIH: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)