Massage is the practice of pressing, rubbing, and kneading the muscles and soft tissues of the body to help someone relax, ease pain, or recover from physical activity. When you get a massage, someone uses their hands (and sometimes elbows or special tools) to work on tight or sore areas, helping the muscles loosen up and feel better.

Athletes often get massages after hard training sessions to help their muscles recover faster. People who sit at desks all day might get shoulder massages to relieve tension from hunching over computers. Physical therapists use massage techniques to help injured people heal. Even animals enjoy being massaged: horses, dogs, and cats can appreciate gentle rubbing and scratching.

While professional massage therapists train for years to learn proper techniques, simple forms of massage come naturally to us: when you rub your own sore neck or when a parent rubs a child's back to help them fall asleep, that's massage too.

You might also hear someone say they need to massage the numbers or massage an idea, which means to adjust or work with something carefully until it fits better, much like working on a tight muscle until it relaxes.