blood type

See synonyms for blood type on Thesaurus.com

noun

blood group.

Origin of blood type

First recorded in 1930–35

Words Nearby blood type

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use blood type in a sentence

On his yellow helmet was a patch indicating his blood type in case of disaster.
What it’s like to rescue someone at sea from a Coast Guard helicopter | Rob Verger | July 20, 2021 | Popular-Science
For instance, researchers again confirmed a genetic link between blood type and the likelihood of getting infected, but don’t know why people with type O blood may be slightly protected.
How your DNA may affect whether you get COVID-19 or become gravely ill | Tina Hesman Saey | July 8, 2021 | Science News
A person’s blood type is determined by variations in a single gene.
23andMe’s Huge Covid-19 Study Draws Links Between the Virus and Our Genetics | Shelly Fan | May 4, 2021 | Singularity Hub
The team found that the O blood type was less likely to test positive for the infection than expected—suggesting, though not necessarily proving, that the blood type could be more protective against the disease.
23andMe’s Huge Covid-19 Study Draws Links Between the Virus and Our Genetics | Shelly Fan | May 4, 2021 | Singularity Hub
However, a DNA letter swap may have consequences—changing the color of your eyes, your blood type, your likelihood of getting Alzheimer’s or autism, how well you can fend off a viral infection, etc.
23andMe’s Huge Covid-19 Study Draws Links Between the Virus and Our Genetics | Shelly Fan | May 4, 2021 | Singularity Hub

Name, social security number, blood type, and religious preference.
Yes, There Are Humanists in Foxholes | Don Gomez | April 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
What if, for example, a blood type A vampire went to work on a blood type B young lady—would that create problems?
‘Dark Shadows’ Returns: A User’s Guide to Drinking Blood | Kent Sepkowitz | May 11, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
Once a heart is found, it is given to the best possible match based on blood type, body size, and medical condition.
Dick Cheney Surgery: 7 Essential Facts About Heart Transplants | | March 26, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
In addition to the photograph and other data for identification, the card contains blood type and residence information.
Area Handbook for Romania | Eugene K. Keefe, Donald W. Bernier, Lyle E. Brenneman, William Giloane, James M. Moore, and Neda A. Walpole
You see, we'd already checked at his last known address, earlier this morning, before we got the final check on the blood type.
Nor Iron Bars a Cage.... | Gordon Randall Garrett
The book is of the good red-blood type, with few dull lines and stirring action and episodes in almost every page.
The Triumph of Virginia Dale | John Francis, Jr.

British Dictionary definitions for blood type

blood type

noun

another name for blood group

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for blood type

blood type

Any of the four main types into which human blood is divided: A, B, AB, and O. Blood types are based on the presence or absence of specific antigens on red blood cells. Also called blood group

a closer look

Blood transfusions used to be the treatment of last resort, since they often caused death. But in the 1890s Austrian scientist Karl Landsteiner began to solve the transfusion puzzle when he found that all human red blood cells belonged to one of four groups which he named A, B, AB, and O. The types refer to antigens found on the surface of these cells. Antibodies circulating in a person's blood normally recognize the antigens in that same person's blood cells and don't react with them. However, if a person with one blood type is transfused with blood of another type, the antibodies bind to the foreign antigens, causing dangerous clumping of the blood. Thus the key to a successful transfusion is to give a person blood that has matching antigens. In the first half of the twentieth century, the study of Rhesus monkeys, which share many biological characteristics with humans, gave rise to the recognition of a human blood protein called the Rh factor. People who have this blood protein are considered Rh positive, while individuals who lack the protein are referred to as Rh negative. The Rh factor is connected to an individual's blood type. If a person has type AB blood with a positive Rh factor, his or her blood type is referred to as AB positive. The Rh factor causes a problem in a fetus whose blood is Rh positive and whose mother is Rh negative because the mother's negative blood attacks the positive blood of the fetus. In this instance, a blood transfusion to the fetus can save its life.

Cultural definitions for blood type

blood type

One of many groups into which a person's blood can be categorized, based on the presence or absence of specific antigens in the blood. Blood type is inherited.

Notes for blood type

Blood transfusions can be given only between donors and recipients who have compatible types; if the types are not compatible, the blood of the recipient forms antibodies against the blood of the donor. There are four basic groupings — A, B, AB, and O — and within these groupings, the Rh factor may be present or absent.

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