message

1 of 2

noun

mes·​sage ˈme-sij 

1

: a communication in writing, in speech, or by signals

Please take this message for me to my friend.

2

: a messenger's mission

The girl will go on a message to the shop.

—Cahir Healy

3

: an underlying theme or idea

The message is that it is time to change.

—The Economist

4

: an official position (as of a political party)

Their candidate's speech was on/off message. [=included things that did/did not conform to the party's official position]

see also get the message

message

2 of 2

verb

messaged; messaging

transitive verb

1

: to send as a message or by messenger

2

: to send a message to

intransitive verb

: to communicate by message

Synonyms of message

Noun

• dispatch
• letter
• communication
• report

Examples of message in a Sentence

Noun

Did you get my message?

She has received messages of support from hundreds of people.

I left a message on her answering machine.

He's not here right now. Can I take a message?

I liked the story but I didn't really agree with the book's message.

He believed in the church's message of forgiveness.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Prosecutors maintain the messages showed intent, not a joke or gossip. —Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 22 Jan. 2026

Industry icon Dolly Parton accepted her Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award via video message at last year's Governors Awards, for her career dedication to philanthropic efforts with the Dollywood Foundation and Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, which has given around 285 million books to children. —Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 22 Jan. 2026

Verb

Apple, with its comparable FileVault and Passwords systems, and Meta’s WhatsApp messaging app also allow users to backup data on their apps and store a key in the cloud. —Thomas Brewster, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026

According to the filing, Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, messaged with Damon and his wife, Luciana, on May 17, 2024, inviting the Martian star and his family to view Lively's IEWU cut. —Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 21 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin missaticum, from Latin missus, past participle of mittere

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1582, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Phrases Containing message

• error message
• message board
• off message
• on message
• short message service
• text message

Rhymes for message

• presage
• expressage

Kids Definition

message

noun

mes·​sage

ˈmes-ij

1

: a communication in writing, in speech, or by signals

2

: a messenger's errand or function

3

: an underlying theme or idea

Etymology

Noun

Middle English message "job or function of a messenger," from early French message (same meaning), from Latin missaticum "something given to a messenger to deliver," from earlier missus (past participle of mittere "to send, throw") and -aticum "action, result" — related to emit, mission, promise, submissive