effleurage

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noun

A form of massage involving smooth strokes of the skin with one's hands.

OriginFrench effleurage →
Scrabble 17
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Meanings

nouneffleurage (countable and uncountable, plural effleurages)

plural effleurages

  1. countableuncountablemassageA form of massage involving smooth strokes of the skin with one's hands.

    When shampoo is spread on to the hair it is called an effleurage massage movement.

    2003, Stephanie Henderson, Basic Hairdressing: A Coursebook for Level 2, →ISBN, page 97
    1 more example

    Starting at the point of shoulder, use muscle squeezings, picking-ups, kneadings and gentle frictions, interspersed with effleurages, over the triceps muscle as well as the fleshy part of the flexor and extensor muscle groups.

    2004, Jean-Pierre Hourdebaigt, Canine Massage: A Complete Reference Manual
verbeffleurage (third-person singular simple present effleurages, present participle effleuraging, simple past and past participle effleuraged)

present singular third person effleurages · participle present effleuraging · participle past effleuraged · past effleuraged

  1. massageTo gently stroke the skin in a circular motion with the palm of one's hands.

Origin

  1. Frencheffleurage
  2. Englisheffleurage

Borrowed from French effleurage, from effleurer (“to stroke lightly”).

More words from French

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

effleurage. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/effleurage

MLA

“effleurage.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/effleurage. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “effleurage,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/effleurage.

Source: effleurage on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.