blood

noun, often attributive \ ˈbləd \

|Updated on: 9 Jun 2018

Definition of blood

1 a (1) : the fluid that circulates in the heart, arteries, capillaries, and veins of a vertebrate animal carrying nourishment and oxygen to and bringing away waste products from all parts of the body

(2) : a comparable fluid of an invertebrate

b : a fluid resembling blood

2 : the shedding of blood; also : the taking of life

3 a : lifeblood; broadly : life

b : human stock or lineage; especially : royal lineage

a prince of the blood

c : relationship by descent from a common ancestor : kinship

d : persons related through common descent : kindred

e (1) : honorable or high birth or descent

(2) : descent from parents of recognized breed or pedigree

4 a : blood regarded as the seat of the emotions : temper

b obsolete : lust

c : a showy foppish man : rake

5 : members of a team, staff, or organization : personnel

a company in need of new blood

6 informal : an African American male —used especially among black people

— in one's blood

: ingrained in one's nature : occurring as an innate or seemingly hereditary principle, inclination, or talent

with two parents who are painters, art is in her blood

See blood defined for English-language learners

See blood defined for kids

Examples of blood in a Sentence

The accident victim has already lost a lot of blood.
the blood in your veins

Recent Examples of blood from the Web

Giant hissing, blood-sucking, fluttering animatronic bugs.

— stephan salisbury, Philly.com, "What to see in Philadelphia's museums this summer," 6 June 2018
An obstetrician extracted blood from her umbilical cord and the placenta.

— maria clark, NOLA.com, "New Orleans teen survives cancer thanks to sister's stem cells, shares his story at the Vatican," 6 June 2018
Prehistoric mosquitoes containing Dino blood have been found, but any dino DNA contained within them has long since degraded.

— darren griffin, Scientific American, "Jurassic World: Can We Really Resurrect a Dinosaur?," 6 June 2018
Early Monday, the boy's family found the boy lying on the bathroom floor, a gunshot wound to his left temple, blood pooled underneath him and around his head.

— chicagotribune.com, "11-year-old boy shot to death sang rap songs 'about putting the guns down'," 5 June 2018
Most national medical groups advocate public cord blood banking.

— naseem s. miller, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Orlando-based cord blood bank CORD:USE acquired for $14 million," 5 June 2018
Canton police are reviewing video from the hotel and requested assistance from the State Police to process the blood evidence, the release said.

— emily sweeney, BostonGlobe.com, "Woman stabbed at hotel in Canton, refuses to cooperate with police," 5 June 2018
GENYA SAVILOV/AFP/Getty Images Russian journalist Arkady Babchenko was recently found lying face down on the floor of his apartment in Kiev, Ukraine, blood seeping through his T-shirt.

— hope reese, Vox, "The Russian journalist Arkady Babchenko who faked his own death isn’t alone.," 4 June 2018
Investigators found blood at the scene, along with Delgado's hat and shoe, court records said.

— brieanna j frank, azcentral, "Police ID victim, suspect in fatal Mesa stabbing," 4 June 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of blood

Middle English, from Old English blōd; akin to Old High German bluot blood

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

See Words from the same year

blood Synonyms

Other Anatomy Terms

bilateral symmetry, carotid, cartilage, dorsal, entrails, prehensile, renal, solar plexus, supine, thoracic, ventral

blood

verb

Definition of blood

blooded; blooding; bloods

transitive verb

1 : to stain or wet with blood

2 archaic : bleed 1

3 : to expose (a hunting dog) to sight, scent, or taste of the blood of its prey

4 : to give experience to

troops blooded in battle

Recent Examples of blood from the Web

At the other end of play, Winslow came up blooded by the eye in a collison that left a few players on the floor.

— dave hyde, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Hyde5: Five thoughts on Game 4, Heat season on the edge," 21 Apr. 2018
Iniesta was handed his first-team debut for Barça in 2002 by manager Louis van Gaal, the same coach who had blooded Xavi during an earlier spell in charge.

— SI.com, "'Cancer of Barça': Camp Nou Legend Xavi Recalls Harsh Criticism He Suffered Early in His Career," 20 Mar. 2018
The question is, if Chelsea had any intention of blooding them next season, why spend around £110m on Tiemoue Bakayoko and Alvaro Morata to occupy their positions?

— SI.com, "Harry Kane Is a Rare Beneficiary of the Botched Modern Day Loan System," 15 Apr. 2017
With Mauricio Pochettino's record with blooding young players particularly impressive - his interest in the German comes as no surprise.

— SI.com, "Report: Arsenal, Tottenham Join Barcelona in the Hunt for Leon Goretzka," 5 Nov. 2017

First Known Use of blood

1590

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

BLOOD Defined for English Language Learners

blood

noun

Definition of blood for English Language Learners

: the red liquid that flows through the bodies of people and animals
: members of a team, company, or organization

BLOOD Defined for Kids

blood

noun \ ˈbləd \

Definition of blood for Students

1 : the red fluid that circulates in the heart, arteries, capillaries, and veins of persons and animals and that brings nourishment and oxygen to and carries away waste products from all parts of the body

2 : relationship through a common ancestor : kinship

She is my aunt by marriage, not by blood.

—

blooded

\ˈbləd-əd\ adjective

Medical Dictionary

blood

noun, often attributive \ ˈbləd \

medical Definition of blood

1 : the fluid that circulates in the heart, arteries, capillaries, and veins of a vertebrate animal carrying nourishment and oxygen to and bringing away waste products from all parts of the body

2 : a fluid of an invertebrate comparable to blood

3 : blood regarded in medieval physiology as one of the four humors and believed to be the seat of the emotions

4 : descent from parents of recognized breed or pedigree