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

Beckman, a former Funny Car world champion, was Force's replacement already, stepping in after Force sustained a traumatic brain injury in a severe crash back in June 2024. —Gord Magill, Newsweek, 22 Dec. 2024

Muriel was airlifted to a Zurich hospital with a traumatic brain injury. —Jacob Whitehead, The Athletic, 20 Dec. 2024

From the beating, Wilson lost consciousness, sustained a traumatic brain injury, and had to be hospitalized for more than two weeks, according to the lawsuit. —Matt Hamilton, Los Angeles Times, 17 Dec. 2024

Later that day, he was transported to a local hospital where doctors confirmed what many had feared: a traumatic brain injury. —Greg Engle, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024

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