Hickey

Hickey
Other namesKiss mark, love bite, bug bite, love mark
Hickeys on the neck
Pronunciation
  • Hick-ee
SpecialtyDermatology
Duration3–14 days
Causessuction on skin

A hickey, hickie, or sometimes referred to as a love bite in British English, is a bruise or bruise-like mark caused by biting or sucking the skin of a person, usually on their neck, arm, or earlobe. While biting may be part of giving a hickey, sucking is sufficient to burst small superficial blood vessels under the skin to produce bruising. A hickey is sometimes used to mark someone as being the target of a partner's romantic affection or as belonging to them.[1][2][3][4]

Etymology

The origin of the word is from its earlier meaning of "pimple, skin lesion" (c.1915); perhaps a sense extension and spelling variation from the earlier word meaning "small gadget, device; any unspecified object" which has an unknown origin (1909).[5]

References

  1. "How To Get Rid of Your Hickey, Fast". Cleveland Clinic. Retrieved 2024-12-13.
  2. "How to Get Rid of a Hickey". 2024-10-15. Retrieved 2024-12-13.
  3. "Need To Get Rid of a Hickey ASAP? Try These 5 Tips". Health. Retrieved 2024-12-13.
  4. "Andria Hickey helms programming at Shorefast and Fogo Island Arts - Concordia University". www.concordia.ca. Retrieved 2024-12-13.
  5. "hickie - Origin and meaning of hickie by Online Etymology Dictionary". www.etymonline.com.
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