blood

The word “blood” means the red fluid pumped by the heart that carries oxygen and nutrients around the body. In plain terms, the liquid that circulates in the body, or figuratively, family ancestry.

“Blood” is pronounced bluhd (/blʌd/ in IPA).

Here is “blood” used in a sentence: “The nurse drew a small sample of blood for testing.”

Depending on how it is used, “blood” can be a noun and a verb.

The word “blood” comes from Old English. From Old English blod, going back to a Proto-Germanic root possibly meaning "that which bursts out" — related to the idea of swelling or gushing.

“Blood” is a very common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A2 level.

“Blood” has 3 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: the red fluid pumped by the heart that carries oxygen and nutrients around the body.

Blood is the body's transport system. It carries oxygen from the lungs and nutrients from digestion to every cell, then removes carbon dioxide and waste. It also distributes hormones, spreads heat to help regulate temperature, and delivers the white cells and clotting factors that fight infection and seal wounds.

Blood has four main parts. Red cells carry oxygen and give blood its colour; white cells defend against infection; platelets help it clot; and plasma, the pale liquid, carries all of these along with nutrients, hormones, and waste. Together they make up the fluid pumped around your body.

Human blood is grouped mainly by the ABO system into types A, B, AB, and O, each either positive or negative depending on the Rhesus factor. These groups matter for transfusions, because mixing incompatible types can be dangerous. Type O negative is often called the universal donor.

Blood owes its colour to haemoglobin, the iron-rich protein in red cells that binds oxygen. When richly oxygenated, as in the arteries, it is bright red; after delivering its oxygen it turns a darker, brownish red. Blood is never truly blue, despite the tint of veins seen through the skin.