Whiteheads

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A type of acne lesion characterized by a clogged pore filled with sebum, dead skin cells, and bacteria, which results in a small, white or flesh-colored bump on the skin's surface
2. These lesions form when hair follicles become blocked due to oil and skin debris, manifesting as small, non-inflamed bumps that often appear on the face and other areas
3. Small bumps on the skin caused by oil and dead cells blocking hair follicles, appearing white or flesh-toned

Etymology: Whiteheads is the plural of "whitehead," a noun for the small, pale bump that forms when a pore clogs with oil, dead skin cells and bacteria. The word is a plain compound of "white" and "head," and it is the form the English language uses for a head of something: a pimple that has come to a point with a whitish tip. The "head" in the name is the swollen tip of the blemish, the spot where the trapped material gathers near the surface. Calling it a head follows the same pattern as the head of a boil or a head of foam on a glass of beer, where a rounded top is the most visible part. The plural simply applies that label to more than one bump, so "whiteheads" names a crop of these spots at once, not a separate kind of acne.

Synonyms: acne, blemish, pimple