noun
-
the blood, considered as vital to sustain life
-
the essential or animating force
Etymology
Origin of lifeblood
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Diamond mining has been the lifeblood of this part of West Africa since the 1930s.
From BBC • Jun. 3, 2026
“Investors are going to be focused on that metric and trends there, given engagement is really the lifeblood of the company and really what fuels the long-term revenue and earnings growth.”
From MarketWatch • Apr. 15, 2026
These deposits are the lifeblood of the economy, especially in areas outside major cities, where local banks use them to finance loans to individuals, small businesses and farmers.
From Barron's • Jan. 27, 2026
“Cargo remains the lifeblood of the U.S. economy. American farmers, manufacturers, retailers and consumers all depend on how well we move that cargo.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 22, 2026
The portrait people were still missing from their frames; the whole place was eerily still, as if all its remaining lifeblood were concentrated in the Great Hall where the dead and the mourners were crammed.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
