blood group

noun

: one of the classes (such as those designated A, B, AB, or O) into which individuals or their blood can be separated on the basis of the presence or absence of specific antigens in the blood

called also blood type

Examples of blood group in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Of the 17 blood group systems discovered globally since 2012, 10 have been uncovered by France’s EFS and its research collaborators. Jenny Lehmann, Discover Magazine, 26 June 2025 Moving forward, researchers are eager to know if other people might have the same genetic mutation and the same blood group. Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 24 June 2025 Remember that the safety of a transfusion depends on the compatibility of blood groups. Mandy Taheri, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 June 2025 Two of the blood groups can still be found almost exclusively in modern people from Sub-Saharan Africa. Paul Smaglik, Discover Magazine, 24 Jan. 2025 Tilley, Thornton, and colleagues were also responsible for discovering the genetic basis for the 44th blood group system, called Er, in 2022, as well as the MAM blood group system in 2020, among others. Chris Baraniuk, WIRED, 16 Sep. 2024 The findings mark the discovery of the 47th blood group system. Chris Baraniuk, WIRED, 16 Sep. 2024 With the Holocaust, and the post-World War II rejection of racial nationhood, the often pseudo-scientific practice of measuring and categorizing people according to skull metrics, and more legitimately blood groups, fell into disrepute. Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 6 June 2010 Previous genetic studies of blood group and serum markers suggested that Jewish groups had Middle Eastern origin with greater genetic similarity between paired Jewish populations. Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 6 June 2010

Word History

First Known Use

1916, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of blood group was in 1916

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Cite this Entry

“Blood group.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blood%20group. Accessed 8 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

blood group

noun
: one of the classes into which people or their blood can be separated on the basis of the presence or absence of specific antigens in their blood

called also blood type

blood grouping noun

Medical Definition

blood group

noun
: one of the classes (as A, B, AB, or O) into which individual vertebrates and especially human beings or their blood can be separated on the basis of the presence or absence of specific antigens in the blood

called also blood type

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