PHRASE
You can use the expressions
new blood
,
fresh blood
, or
young blood
to refer to people who are brought into an organization to improve it by thinking of new ideas or new ways of doing things. □
There's been a major reshuffle of the cabinet to bring in new blood.
11
PHRASE
If you say that someone
sweats blood
trying to do something, you are emphasizing that they try very hard to do it. [EMPHASIS
] □
I had to sweat blood for an M.A.
12
PHRASE
If you say that someone
draws first blood
, you mean that they have had a success at the beginning of a competition or conflict. [mainly BRIT
] □
The home side drew first blood with a penalty from Murray Strang.
13
flesh and blood
→ see
flesh
14
own flesh and blood
→ see
flesh
COLLOCATIONS
blood
NOUN
1
verb + blood
: shed, spill; lose
bloo
d and thu
n|der
also
blood-and-thunder
ADJ
[ADJ
n] A
blood and thunder
performer or performance is very loud and emotional. □
He was a blood-and-thunder preacher.
bloo
d bank
(
blood banks
) N‑COUNT
A
blood bank
is a place where blood which has been taken from blood donors is stored until it is needed for people in hospital.
blood|bath
/blʌ
dbɑːθ, -bæθ/ (bloodbaths
) also
blood bath
N‑COUNT
If you describe an event as a
bloodbath
, you are emphasizing that a lot of people were killed very violently. [EMPHASIS
] □
The war degenerated into a bloodbath of tribal killings.
bloo
d broth|er
(
blood brothers
) also
blood-brother
N‑COUNT
A man's
blood brother
is a man he has sworn to treat as a brother, often in a ceremony which involves mixing a small amount of their blood.
bloo
d count
(
blood counts
) N‑COUNT
Your
blood count
is the number of red and white cells in your blood. A
blood count
can also refer to a medical examination which determines the number of red and white cells in your blood. □
Her blood count was normal.
□
We do a blood count to ensure that all is well.
bloo
d-curdling
also
bloodcurdling
ADJ
[usu ADJ
n] A
blood-curdling
sound or story is very frightening and horrible. □
…blood-curdling tales.
blo
od do|nor
(
blood donors
) N‑COUNT
A
blood donor
is someone who gives some of their blood so that it can be used in operations.
bloo
d feud
(
blood feuds
) N‑COUNT
A
blood feud
is a long-lasting, bitter disagreement between two or more groups of people, particularly family groups. Blood feuds often involve members of each group murdering or fighting with members of the other.
bloo
d group
(
blood groups
) N‑COUNT
[oft poss N
] Someone's
blood group
is the type of blood that they have in their body. There are four main types: A, B, AB, and O.
bloo
d hea
t
N‑UNCOUNT
Blood heat
is a temperature of 37°C, which is about the same as the normal temperature of the human body.
blood|hound
/blʌ
dhaʊnd/ (bloodhounds
) N‑COUNT
A
bloodhound
is a large dog with a very good sense of smell. Bloodhounds are often used to find people or other animals by following their scent.
blood|less
/blʌ
dləs/
1
ADJ
A
bloodless
coup or victory is one in which nobody is killed. □
Reports from the area indicate that it was a bloodless coup.
□
The campaign would be short and relatively bloodless.
●
blood|less|ly
ADV
[ADV
with v] □
This war had to be fought fast and relatively bloodlessly.
2
ADJ
If you describe someone's face or skin as
bloodless
, you mean that it is very pale. □
…her face grey and bloodless.
bloo
d-letting
1
N‑UNCOUNT
Blood-letting
is violence or killing between groups of people, especially between rival armies. □
Once again there's been ferocious blood-letting in the township.
2
N‑UNCOUNT
Journalists sometimes refer to a bitter quarrel between two groups of people from within the same organization as
blood-letting
. □
Hopefully a satisfactory solution can be reached without much blood-letting.