lesion

noun

le·​sion ˈlē-zhən 

1

: injury, harm

2

: an abnormal change in structure of an organ or part due to injury or disease

especially : one that is circumscribed (see circumscribe sense 1) and well-defined

lesioned

ˈlē-zhənd 

adjective

Examples of lesion in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

If the infection enters the bloodstream, symptoms also can include fever, chills, low blood pressure and blistering skin lesions. — ABC News, 17 Aug. 2026

Basal cell carcinomas may show up as small patches of itchy skin that get dismissed as dryness, when the immune system is actually reacting to a cancerous lesion. — Hanna Wickes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 17 Aug. 2026

In 2024, Shaoheng Chen, then a student at the optometry college, had assisted a professor with a seventy-four-year-old female patient who had bleeding and leopard-spot lesions on her retina. — E. Tammy Kim, New Yorker, 15 Aug. 2026

In some cases, people develop telltale skin lesions, particularly on the face. — Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 12 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin laesion-, laesio, from laedere to injure

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for lesion

• friesian
• adhesion
• artesian
• cartesian
• cohesion
• elysian
• magnesian
• austronesian
• indonesian
• melanesian
• micronesian
• polynesian

Kids Definition

lesion

noun

le·​sion ˈlē-zhən 

: a change in the structure of a bodily organ or part due to injury or disease

especially : an injured or diseased spot or area clearly marked off from healthy tissue around it

Medical Definition

lesion

1 of 2 noun

le·​sion ˈlē-zhən 

: an abnormal change in structure of an organ or part due to injury or disease

especially : one that is circumscribed and well defined

lesioned

-zhənd 

adjective

lesion

2 of 2 transitive verb

: to produce lesions in (as an animal's brain)

Legal Definition

lesion

noun

le·​sion ˈlē-zhən 

in the civil law of Louisiana : loss from failure to receive a threshold amount or value (as one-half market value) for immovable property conveyed or transferred by a commutative contract (as a sale or exchange)

called also lesion beyond moiety

compare unjust enrichment

Etymology

Anglo-French, damage, injury, from Latin laesio, from laedere to injure