bleed

verb

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\ ˈblēd

bled\ ˈbled

\; bleeding

Definition of bleed

(Entry 1 of 2)

intransitive verb

1a : to emit or lose blood

b : to sacrifice one's blood especially in battle

2 : to feel anguish, pain, or sympathy a heart that bleeds at a friend's misfortune

3a : to escape by oozing or flowing (as from a wound)

b : to spread into or through something gradually : seep foreign policy bleeds into economic policy— J. B. Judis

4 : to give up some constituent (such as sap or dye) by exuding or diffusing it

5a : to pay out or give money

b : to have money extorted

6 : to be printed so as to run off one or more edges of the page after trimming

transitive verb

1 : to remove or draw blood from

2 : to get or extort money from especially over a prolonged period

3 : to draw sap from (a tree)

4a : to extract or let out some or all of a contained substance from bleed a brake line

b : to extract or cause to escape from a container

c : to diminish gradually —usually used with offa pilot bleeding off airspeed

d : to lose rapidly and uncontrollably the company was bleeding money

e : sap cost overruns … bleed other programs— Alex Roland

5 : to cause (something, such as a printed illustration) to bleed

bleed white

: to drain of blood or resources

bleed

noun

Definition of bleed (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : printed matter (such as an illustration) that bleeds also : the part of a bleed trimmed off

2 : the escape of blood from vessels : hemorrhage

Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about bleed

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Examples of bleed in a Sentence

Verb She was bleeding from the face and hands. Doctors used to bleed their patients in an effort to cure them. We bled air from the tank. You'll need to bleed the car's brake lines.

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Amazon and even Walmart may quickly bleed out via a thousand paper cuts. — Justin Brady, Quartz, "These are the businesses that will actually benefit from job automation," 21 Nov. 2019 The problem of bias—particularly racial and gender bias—in algorithms and artificial intelligence systems is bleeding into the public consciousness through a steady flow of unwelcome stories. — David Meyer, Fortune, "IBM: The Fight Against A.I. Bias Is Never Over," 20 Nov. 2019 The Flint Community Schools have been bleeding students for years, a process that accelerated during the Flint water crisis. — John Wisely, Detroit Free Press, "Several Flint schools could close by Christmas as district faces financial crisis," 19 Nov. 2019 While the east coast continues to be spared, red tide tide bled partially into Florida’s Panhandle, where it was observed in background concentrations in one testing site between Escambia and Bay counties. — Joe Mario Pedersen, orlandosentinel.com, "Red tide grew drastically along Florida’s west coast in less than a month," 18 Nov. 2019 My heart bleeds today for everyone who was a part of his life. — Dan Brechlin, courant.com, "Twins prospect, Wethersfield native Ryan Costello, found dead in New Zealand hotel room," 18 Nov. 2019 The center also confirmed that Carter was suffering from a subdural hematoma, which is bleeding in between the skull and the brain, according to Dr. Sarel Vorster, a neurosurgeon at the Cleveland Clinic. — Adrianna Rodriguez, USA TODAY, "What is the procedure that hospitalized Jimmy Carter? A doctor explains," 13 Nov. 2019 Three minutes later, with Blue down and bleeding, Red was declared the winner. — Patricia Mazzei, New York Times, "The Last Days of Legal Cockfighting in Puerto Rico," 9 Nov. 2019 The person was reportedly bleeding from the shoulder. — Mara H. Gottfried, Twin Cities, "Sibley High senior killed in one St. Paul shooting; federal officer involved in another," 6 Nov. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun But child protective workers and others tasked with protecting him from abuse missed numerous warnings and opportunities to intervene before his death from a brain bleed. — Los Angeles Times, "Newsletter: Essential California Week in Review: Safety flaws aboard the Conception," 7 Sep. 2019 After a street mugging, even his lapel boutonnière bleeds. — Armond White, National Review, "Joker: The Latest Installment in the Derangement Franchise," 2 Oct. 2019 Medics took the victim to a hospital for treatment of a brain bleed and a dislocated pelvis, Officer Tony Martinez said. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "77-year-old pedestrian struck, gravely injured in City Heights," 20 Sep. 2019 But the voice that comes out of the 6-foot, 160-pound actor is epic enough to carry the familiar stanzas into the nose-bleeds. — Andrea Simakis, cleveland.com, "‘Bat Out of Hell — The Musical’ in New York is a gloriously messy, over-the-top fever dream of fun," 30 Aug. 2019 He was immediately rushed into surgery after doctors found a brain bleed, police said in court documents. — Jay R. Jordan, Houston Chronicle, "Houston man wanted for beating child could be in California, authorities say," 21 Aug. 2019 Forerunner Ventures’ website, for example, uses a carousel of full-bleed images to highlight investments in startups such as beauty brand Glossier Inc., luggage maker Away and DTC vitamins marketer Ritual. — Alexander Davis, WSJ, "VC Firms Polish Their Own Brands to Chase the Next Consumer Hit," 2 May 2019 When a fighter gets knocked out, issue a mandatory three-month suspension, a rule change Daniel Franco, a former featherweight contender who saw his life nearly snuffed out after suffering a brain bleed during a fight two years ago, has championed. — Chris Mannix, SI.com, "Maxim Dadashev's Death a Heartbreaking Result of a Violent Sport," 24 July 2019 Udell, who would have turned 76 next week, died after being treated at a local hospital for a brain bleed and severe burns, police said. — Doha Madani, NBC News, "Florida delivery man allegedly attacks elderly woman with mallet, sets her on fire," 20 Aug. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bleed.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.