bloodbath
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
English[edit]
Alternative forms[edit]
Etymology[edit]
Coined in 1867. Compound of blood and bath, the latter used to refer in the metaphorical sense to a deluge of a thing.
Noun[edit]
bloodbath (plural bloodbaths)
- Indiscriminate killing or slaughter, a massacre.
- 1814, Robert Jamieson, “Stark Tiderich and Olger Danske”, in Illustrations of northern antiquities, from the earlier Tentonie and Scandinavian romances: being an abstract of the Book of heroes, and Nibelungen lay; with translation of metrical tales, from the Old German, Danish, Swedish, and Icelandie languages; with notes and dissertations[1], Edinburgh: James Ballantyne and Co., translation of Kæmpe Viser, Popular Heroic and Romantic Ballads, translated from the Northern Languages, with Notes and Illustrations, page 272:
- There lay the steed; here lay the man; Gude friends that day did twin: They leuch na a' to the feast that cam Whan the het bluid-bath was done.
- 22 March 2012, Scott Tobias, AV Club The Hunger Games[2]
- In movie terms, it suggests Paul Verhoeven in Robocop/Starship Troopers mode, an R-rated bloodbath where the grim spectacle of children murdering each other on television is bread-and-circuses for the age of reality TV, enforced by a totalitarian regime to keep the masses at bay.
- 1814, Robert Jamieson, “Stark Tiderich and Olger Danske”, in Illustrations of northern antiquities, from the earlier Tentonie and Scandinavian romances: being an abstract of the Book of heroes, and Nibelungen lay; with translation of metrical tales, from the Old German, Danish, Swedish, and Icelandie languages; with notes and dissertations[1], Edinburgh: James Ballantyne and Co., translation of Kæmpe Viser, Popular Heroic and Romantic Ballads, translated from the Northern Languages, with Notes and Illustrations, page 272:
- (sports) An aggressive or very violent contest or confrontation.
- 1951, Tim Cohane, “Be Each, Pray God, a Gentlemen!”, in The Yale Football Story[3], New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, page 93:
- Although the Hampden Park blood bath of '94 caused Yale and Harvard to break off football relations for the next two years, they kept close watch on each other.
- 1951, Tim Cohane, “Be Each, Pray God, a Gentlemen!”, in The Yale Football Story[3], New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, page 93:
- (figuratively) An upset (as of a game with unexpected results) or heavy defeat.
- (figuratively, business) A large financial loss or massive layoff brought about by negative economic conditions.
- 1989, “Richard Daley Wins Chicago Mayoral Race; Blacks Fail to Unite Behind Tim Evans”, in Robert E. Johnson editor, Jet Magazine[4], volume 76, Chicago: Johnson Publishing Company, National Report, page 9:
- In an interview after the victory, Daley sought to assure Blacks that there would be no personnel bloodbath at City Hall.
- 1989, “Richard Daley Wins Chicago Mayoral Race; Blacks Fail to Unite Behind Tim Evans”, in Robert E. Johnson editor, Jet Magazine[4], volume 76, Chicago: Johnson Publishing Company, National Report, page 9:
- A bath taken in warm blood used as a restorative or medical treatment.
- 1834, “On Blood-Baths: An Historical Notice.”, in The London Medical Gazette; Being a Weekly Journal of Medicine and the Collateral Sciences[5], volume 13, London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, Green, & Longman, page 813:
- On Blood-Baths: An Historical Notice. By Dr. Hecker. According to a dark tradition which is incidentally mentioned by Pliny, the ancient kings of Egypt used to bathe in human blood when they were seized with leprosy.
- 1834, “On Blood-Baths: An Historical Notice.”, in The London Medical Gazette; Being a Weekly Journal of Medicine and the Collateral Sciences[5], volume 13, London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, Green, & Longman, page 813:
Translations[edit]
indiscriminate killing or slaughter
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