hemorrhage

1 of 2

noun

hem·​or·​rhage ˈhe-mə-rij 

ˈhem-rij

1

medical : a copious or heavy discharge of blood from the blood vessels

a cerebral hemorrhage

postpartum hemorrhage

stop the hemorrhage

2

: a rapid and uncontrollable loss or outflow

a financial hemorrhage

hemorrhagic

ˌhe-mə-ˈra-jik 

adjective

hemorrhage

2 of 2

verb

hemorrhaged; hemorrhaging

intransitive verb

: to undergo heavy or uncontrollable bleeding

began to hemorrhage after the surgery

transitive verb

: to lose rapidly and uncontrollably

The company is hemorrhaging money.

Did you know?

A hemorrhage usually results from either a severe blow to the body or from medication being taken for something else. Though many hemorrhages aren't particularly serious, those that occur in the brain (cerebral hemorrhages) can be life-threatening. In older people, hemorrhages are often caused by blood-thinning medication taken to prevent heart attacks. A bruise (or hematoma) is a hemorrhage close enough to the surface of the skin to be visible. Hemorrhage is also a verb, which isn't always used to talk about actual blood; thus, we may hear that a business is hemorrhaging money, or that the U.S. has been hemorrhaging industrial jobs for decades. Be careful when writing hemorrhage; it's not an easy word to spell.

Examples of hemorrhage in a Sentence

Noun

The patient suffered a cerebral hemorrhage.

There is a possibility of hemorrhage with the procedure.

Verb

The patient began to hemorrhage after the surgery.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

According to the report, a CT scan of Frehley’s head revealed multiple contusions, bone fractures to the back of his skull, hemorrhages, and a subdural hematoma (the type of bleeding that occurs in a person’s brain after a head injury). —Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 10 Nov. 2025

The new study’s findings were based on data collected from 1,600 adults with a median age of 75 who were hospitalized for intracerebral hemorrhage. —Gina Park, CNN Money, 10 Nov. 2025

Verb

In the three months since the Pentagon deployed warships and aircraft in a campaign that the White House said was aimed at drug traffickers from Venezuela, the bolivar has depreciated around 70% against the US dollar, according to data from the central bank, hemorrhaging one point every day. —Stefano Pozzebon, CNN Money, 11 Nov. 2025

The decision comes one week after instructing his defensive coordinator to move from the press box to the sideline and amid a rough stretch in which the defense has been hemorrhaging points; the team has been outscored 179-89 over its last five games. —Rowan Fisher-Shotton, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Latin haemorrhagia, from Greek haimorrhagia, from haimo- hem- + -rrhagia

First Known Use

Noun

1671, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1928, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Rhymes for hemorrhage

• haemorrhage

Kids Definition

hemorrhage

1 of 2 noun

hem·​or·​rhage ˈhem-(ə-)rij 

: a great loss of blood from the blood vessels especially when caused by injury

hemorrhagic

ˌhem-ə-ˈraj-ik 

adjective

hemorrhage

2 of 2 verb

hemorrhaged; hemorrhaging

: to bleed heavily or uncontrollably

Medical Definition

hemorrhage

1 of 2 noun

hem·​or·​rhage

variants or chiefly British haemorrhage

ˈhem-(ə-)rij 

: a copious discharge of blood from the blood vessels

hemorrhagic adjective

or chiefly British haemorrhagic

ˌhem-ə-ˈraj-ik 

hemorrhage

2 of 2 intransitive verb

variants or chiefly British haemorrhage

hemorrhaged; hemorrhaging

: to undergo heavy or uncontrollable bleeding