Massage - Message

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• 'Massage' may be either a count noun or a non-count noun. The word may be pronounced with the stress on the first syllable, which has been the traditional British (RP) pronunciation; or second syllable (which OED (2000) says is "usual in North America"/. The -g- may be realized as /ʒ/ or /dʒ/ on both saides of the Atlantic, giving a 'British' IPA: /'mæ sɑːʒ(or dʒ) or American mæ 'sɑːʒ(or dʒ)/.

• • As a non-count noun, 'massage' means 'the art of healing through rubbing muscles, or at least making one feel better by stroking one's skin' (e.g., 'Massage is not a suitable treatment for many muscular complaints') .
  • As a count noun, massage means 'the act of exercising this art or an occasion on which the art is exercised' (e.g., 'I had two massages last week').
  • The verb 'to massage' (with the same variation of pronunciation) means 'to administer a massage'.

A person who gives a massage professionally is not a massager: rather, such a person's name depends on their gender. A male who gives massages professionally is a masseur while a female who gives massages professionally is called a masseuse.

• A message (count noun) is a communication. One can leave a message at a reception desk, or send someone a telephone message; e-mails are messages. A work of art, or a political demonstration, can carry a message, to the public, or to the government, or to a company, etc. The word has the stress on the first syllable, 'MESS-idge', IPA: /'mɛ sɪdʒ/. A person who carries or delivers a message is a messenger.

In Scotland and some other English-speaking areas, 'to do [or go for] the messages means what in English is 'to do the shopping'.