traumatic brain injury

noun

: an acquired brain injury caused by external force (such as a blow to the head sustained in a motor vehicle accident or fall or shrapnel or a bullet entering through the skull)

Traumatic brain injury occurs when the shock from an explosion damages neurological fibers. Soldiers may survive a blast with scarcely a cut, only to find over time that they suffer coordination and memory loss, dizziness, insomnia.

—Nancy Gibbs

An unprotected fall, especially if the player is unconscious or his opponent lands on top of him, can result in severe traumatic brain injury.

—Michael J. Stuart et al.

broadly : acquired brain injury

—abbreviation TBI

Examples of traumatic brain injury in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Theo Larson was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury, suffered facial fractures and has lost all memory of the night of the crash. —Nick Ferraro, Twin Cities, 8 May 2025

This is actually a traumatic brain injury, not just a concussion. —Rachel Raposas, People.com, 7 May 2025

Research has also shown that women tend to be treated less aggressively for various conditions, such as traumatic brain injury, than men, which results in poorer long-term outcomes. —Maia Niguel Hoskin, Forbes.com, 1 May 2025

Over 90% of cases of traumatic brain injury (TBI) are mild. —New Atlas, 30 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1931, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

traumatic brain injury

noun

: an acquired brain injury caused by external force (as a blow to the head sustained in a motor vehicle accident or fall or shrapnel or a bullet entering through the skull)

A soldier—or a civilian—can survive the blast without a single penetrating wound and still receive the worst diagnosis: traumatic brain injury, or TBI, the signature injury of the Iraq War.

—Michael Mason, Discover

An unprotected fall, especially if the player is unconscious or his opponent lands on top of him, can result in severe traumatic brain injury.

—Michael J. Stuart et al., USA Today

broadly : acquired brain injury

—abbreviation TBI