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bloodhound

[bluhd-hound]
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noun
  1. one of a breed of medium- to large-sized dogs, usually having a black-and-tan coat, very long ears, loose skin, and an acute sense of smell: used chiefly for following human scents.
  2. a person who is a steadfast pursuer.
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Origin of bloodhound

First recorded in 1300–50, bloodhound is from the Middle English word blod-hound. See blood, hound1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

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Examples from the Web for bloodhound

Historical Examples

  • Upon it, in great white letters, was painted the name, "The Bloodhound."

    Howard Pyle's Book of Pirates

    Howard Pyle

  • Old Jeff Hooker had a bloodhound, and Tom was going to borrow him.

    Tom Sawyer, Detective

    Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)

  • The bloodhound was with him; he had sent home for it since the attempted riot.

    The Christian

    Hall Caine

  • In perceiving these things I have the scent of a bloodhound.

  • Any officer, coming upon that trail, would run it up like a bloodhound.

    Red Cap Tales

    Samuel Rutherford Crockett

British Dictionary definitions for bloodhound

bloodhound

noun
  1. a large breed of hound having a smooth glossy coat of red, tan, or black and loose wrinkled skin on its head: formerly much used in tracking and police work
  2. informal a detective
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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

Word Origin and History for bloodhound

n.

also blood-hound, type of large dog used in hunting, c.1300, from blood (n.) + hound (n.).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper