Middle English Dictionary Entry

blọ̄d n.(1)
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Entry Info

Definitions (Senses and Subsenses)

1a.
(a) Blood; drauen ~, to draw blood; leten ~, sheden ~, spillen ~, shed blood; cause bloodshed, take life; as red as ~; (b) leten ~, to bleed (a person), phlebotomize; fig. to wound, weaken; let the juices out of (a pie); (c) ~ of the erthe, wine; ~ of the grape, wine, ?grape juice; (d) med. ded ~, extravasated blood; also, a kind of skin disease; gret nourishing ~, grosse nutrimental ~, blood not yet thinned by the heart; herte ~, the blood in the heart; lifeblood, life; menstrual (menstrue) ~, month ~, whit ~, ~ of women, menstrual blood; nourishing ~, ~ nutrimental, venous blood; utter ~, the blood between the flesh and the skin; spiritual ~, arterial blood (thinned by the heart); vein ~; wateri ~, urine; (e) alch. the solvent liquid or 'menstruum'.
1b.
(a) ~ brod, bloodstained; ~ draught, ~ gite, ~ shed, ~ shedding, ~ spilling, the shedding (or drawing) of blood; bloodshed, slaughter; ~ shedere, ~ sheuere, a murderer; ~ sweting, the sweating of blood; (b) ~ drop; ~ hound, q.v.; ~ pit, ?a pit to receive the blood of slaughtered animals; ~ pudding; ~ ron, a streak of blood; ~ strem; (c) med. ~ fallen, ~ shoten, bloodshot; ~ last, ~ lasting, ~ lete (vr. ~ late), ~ leting (vr. ~ latinge), ~ les [OE blōdlǣs, blōdlǣswū], bloodletting, phlebotomy [all qq.v.]; ~ latere, ~ letere, a professional bloodletter; ~ leten (man), (a man who has been) phlebotomized; ~ making, the generation of blood (in the liver); ~ speuere, ~ spittere, one who spits blood; ~ water, ?plasma; (d) ~ bande, ~ bende, ~ binde, a ligature or bandage to stop bleeding; ~ hous, a monastic building for bloodletting; ~ iren, a surgical instrument for bloodletting; ~ soukere, a leech, bloodsucker; the medicinal leech (Hirudo sanguinalis) used in phlebotomy; ~ wort, shepherd's purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris).
1c.
Med. (a) Blood, one of the four humors; (b) god ~, verrei and pur ~, natural ~, natural humor; unkind ~, unlouable ~, ivel ~, blood corrupted or mixed with another humor; colrik ~, fleumatik ~, melancolik ~, blood having an admixture (or some of the qualities) of choler (phlegm, melancholy); ~ adust, blood corrupted by adustion; (c) the thick blood-like substance formed in the liver and subsequently transformed into the four humors; masse of ~.
2a.
(a) Life blood, life; in her ~, alive; (b) flesh and ~, ~ and bon, the body, physical nature; the bodily appetites; in (on, of) flesh and ~, in body, bodily, physically; ōn flesh and ~ with, married to (sb.); (c) flesh and ~, ~ and bon, all of the body; adv. entirely, completely, altogether; (d) nimen (haven, taken) flesh and ~, to take living or human form; with (in) flesh and ~, in human or living form, in the flesh, in person; of flesh and ~, living, alive; human, mortal.
2b.
A living being, a creature, a person.
3.
Bleeding; loss of blood; to the ~, until he bleeds; veine ~, bloodletting of a vein, vein-bleeding.
4.
(a) Blood (personified); (b) bloodshed; the taking of life, manslaughter, murder; responsibility for death, bloodguilt; ?punishment for bloodguilt; man of ~, a shedder of blood, a murderer; boi of ~, ?a murderous churl or ruffian; vengere of ~, ~ wrekere, an avenger of death.
5.
Theol. (a) Cristes ~, Godes ~, his ~, Christ's blood as present in the Eucharist; (b) ~ of the bond of pes, ~ of the testament, the Blood of the (Jewish) Covenant; (c) sweren bi ~, to swear by (someone's) blood; in oaths: bi Godes ~, etc.
6a.
(a) Lineage, descent, ancestry; stock, race; ~ roial, royal lineage; (b) mengen (medlen) ~, to intermarry; bigeten in gentil ~, of kind ~, of gentle birth; ben of (one's) ~, be descended from (sb.), be related to (sb.); of hol ~, of a specified race or lineage by both parents; of half ~, by only one parent; of roial hol ~, [see quot.]; right of ~, right of birth; (c) high lineage, royal blood; (d) a person of (specified) lineage; -- also coll.
6b.
Relationship by birth, blood relationship, consanguinity, kinship; next of ~, of next ~, nearest in kinship (to sb.), next of kin; neigh of ~, neigh flesh and ~, near in kinship (to sb.); brother of ~, blood brother; cousin of ~, cousin by blood relationship; ~ bretheren, (spiritual) blood brothers, fellow men.
6c.
(a) Blood relatives, kindred; descendants; a kinsman, a near relative; next ~, nearest blood relatives; (owen) flesh and ~, (one's) blood kinsman; ~ to touchen ~, for near kindred to have sexual relations; (b) an offspring, son, daughter.
7.
Emotion, anger, passion, (sexual) desire; courage, mettle, spirit; temperament, nature.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

  • a1300 Loke to þi louerd (StJ-C A.15)2 : Loke to þi louerd, man, þar hanget he a rode, and wep hyf þo mist terres al of blode.
  • Note: ?New phrase for sense 7.
    Note: teres of blod, heartfelt tears of compassion.
  • ?a1450 Macer (Stockh Med.10.91)149 : Bysshoppeswort..For þe blode speteres, In þe same wise hit helpiþ hem þat speten blode if she be drunke ofte.
  • Note: New combination for sense 1b.
    Note: Comb. and gloss: ~ spetere, one who spits up blood.
  • ?a1500 *Chauliac(5) (Peterh 118)67a/b : Suiche men owe nott to be letten blode..but ȝiffe grette drede shulde fall byecause of tariynge of blodelesse.
  • Note: Additional quot. for sense 1a.(b).
  • a1500 Truth it (Cnt Add 68)p.71 : Kyng Herrowdes..wex wode And dede seke up the propheceye; He thout hym sone to swage hys bloode.
  • Note: Needed for date in sense 7.--notes per MLL

Supplemental Materials (draft)

  • ?c1400(1379) Daniel *Treat.Uroscopy (Roy 17.D.1)f.31rb (2.3) : Blodlast in þis veyn is..principaly agayn al ma[la]dies of þe spirituales.
  • ?c1400(1379) Daniel *Treat.Uroscopy (Roy 17.D.1)f.31rb (2.3) : It is calde 'vena basilica,' þe baas veyn. & minucioun, i. blodelast, on þis veyn, is principaly agayn sekenes of þe lyuer and of þe stomac.
Note:

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc., see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1a.(d)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. dead blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1a.(d)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. menstrual blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1a.(d)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. menstrue blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1a.(d)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. month blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1a.(d)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. nourishing blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1a.(d)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. nutrimental blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1a.(d)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. spiritual blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1a.(d)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. vein blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1b.(d)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. blood iron.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1b.(d)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. bloodsucker.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1c.(b)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. adust blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1c.(b)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. choleric blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1c.(b)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. evil blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1c.(b)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. fleumatic blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1c.(b)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. good blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1c.(b)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. melancholic blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1c.(b)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. natural blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1c.(b)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. unkind blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1c.(b)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. unlovable blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1c.(b)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. very blood.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 1.(c)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. pure blood.