Note: The blood consists of a liquid, the plasma, containing
minute particles, the blood corpuscles. In the
invertebrate animals it is usually nearly colorless,
and contains only one kind of corpuscles; but in all
vertebrates, except Amphioxus, it contains some
colorless corpuscles, with many more which are red and
give the blood its uniformly red color. See
{Corpuscle}, {Plasma}.
2. Relationship by descent from a common ancestor;
consanguinity; kinship.
To share the blood of Saxon royalty. --Sir W.
Scott.
A friend of our own blood. --Waller.
{Half blood} (Law), relationship through only one parent.
{Whole blood}, relationship through both father and mother.
In American Law, blood includes both half blood, and whole
blood. --Bouvier. --Peters.
3. Descent; lineage; especially, honorable birth; the highest
royal lineage.
Give us a prince of blood, a son of Priam. --Shak.
I am a gentleman of blood and breeding. --Shak.
4. (Stock Breeding) Descent from parents of recognized breed;
excellence or purity of breed.
Note: In stock breeding half blood is descent showing one
half only of pure breed. Blue blood, full blood, or
warm blood, is the same as blood.
Nor gives it satisfaction to our blood. --Shak.
6. The shedding of blood; the taking of life, murder;
manslaughter; destruction.
So wills the fierce, avenging sprite, Till blood for
blood atones. --Hood.
7. A bloodthirsty or murderous disposition. [R.]
He was a thing of blood, whose every motion Was
timed with dying cries. --Shak.
8. Temper of mind; disposition; state of the passions; -- as
if the blood were the seat of emotions.
When you perceive his blood inclined to mirth.
--Shak.
Note: Often, in this sense, accompanied with bad, cold, warm,
or other qualifying word. Thus, to commit an act in
cold blood, is to do it deliberately, and without
sudden passion; to do it in bad blood, is to do it in
anger. Warm blood denotes a temper inflamed or
irritated. To warm or heat the blood is to excite the
passions. Qualified by up, excited feeling or passion
is signified; as, my blood was up.
9. A man of fire or spirit; a fiery spark; a gay, showy man;
a rake.
Seest thou not . . . how giddily 'a turns about all
the hot bloods between fourteen and five and thirty?
--Shak.
It was the morning costume of a dandy or blood.
--Thackeray.
10. The juice of anything, especially if red.
He washed . . . his clothes in the blood of grapes.
--Gen. xiix.
11.
Note: Blood is often used as an adjective, and as the first
part of self-explaining compound words; as,
blood-bespotted, blood-bought, blood-curdling,
blood-dyed, blood-red, blood-spilling, blood-stained,
blood-warm, blood-won.
{Blood baptism} (Eccl. Hist.), the martyrdom of those who had
not been baptized. They were considered as baptized in
blood, and this was regarded as a full substitute for
literal baptism.
{Blood blister}, a blister or bleb containing blood or bloody
serum, usually caused by an injury.
{Blood brother}, brother by blood or birth.
{Blood clam} (Zo["o]l.), a bivalve mollusk of the genus Arca
and allied genera, esp. {Argina pexata} of the American
coast. So named from the color of its flesh.
{Blood corpuscle}. See {Corpuscle}.
{Blood crystal} (Physiol.), one of the crystals formed by the
separation in a crystalline form of the h[ae]moglobin of
the red blood corpuscles; h[ae]matocrystallin. All blood
does not yield blood crystals.
{Blood heat}, heat equal to the temperature of human blood,
or about 981/2 [deg] Fahr.
{Blood horse}, a horse whose blood or lineage is derived from
the purest and most highly prized origin or stock.
{Blood money}. See in the Vocabulary.
{Blood orange}, an orange with dark red pulp.
{Blood poisoning} (Med.), a morbid state of the blood caused
by the introduction of poisonous or infective matters from
without, or the absorption or retention of such as are
produced in the body itself; tox[ae]mia.
{Blood pudding}, a pudding made of blood and other materials.
{Blood relation}, one connected by blood or descent.
{Blood spavin}. See under {Spavin}.
{Blood vessel}. See in the Vocabulary.
{Blue blood}, the blood of noble or aristocratic families,
which, according to a Spanish prover, has in it a tinge of
blue; -- hence, a member of an old and aristocratic
family.
{Flesh and blood}.
(a) A blood relation, esp. a child.
(b) Human nature.
{In blood} (Hunting), in a state of perfect health and vigor.
--Shak.
{To let blood}. See under {Let}.
{Prince of the blood}, the son of a sovereign, or the issue
of a royal family. The sons, brothers, and uncles of the
sovereign are styled princes of the blood royal; and the
daughters, sisters, and aunts are princesses of the blood
royal.