Definition

A swelling that occurs when blood collects outside of blood vessels, usually due to an injury.

Example

After the fall, he developed a hematoma on his arm that took weeks to heal.

Conversation

I noticed you have a bruise on your arm, what happened?

Oh, I bumped into the door, and now there's a little hematoma.

That sounds painful! Is it getting better?

Yeah, it's slowly fading, but it looked pretty bad at first.

Synonyms & Antonyms

Root Explanation

Hematoma → It is formed from "haima" (meaning blood) and "-oma" (meaning tumor or swelling). The word describes a swelling filled with blood, typically resulting from a break in blood vessels.

Memory Tip

Think of 'blood' ('haima') causing a 'swelling' ('-oma') — that's why a hematoma is a swelling filled with blood.

Visually Confused Words