bloodless
Americanadjective
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without blood.
bloodless surgery.
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very pale.
a bloodless face.
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free from bloodshed; accomplished without bloodshed.
a bloodless victory; a bloodless coup.
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spiritless; without vigor, zest, or energy.
a dull, insipid, bloodless young man.
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without emotion or feeling; cold-hearted.
bloodless data.
adjective
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without blood
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conducted without violence (esp in the phrase bloodless revolution )
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anaemic-looking; pale
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lacking vitality; lifeless
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lacking in emotion; cold; unfeeling
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of bloodless
1175–1225; Middle English blodles, Old English blōdlēas. See blood, -less
Explanation
When something is bloodless, it's free of violence. During a bloodless revolution, a regime is overthrown without anyone being killed. A coup or a revolution is sometimes described as bloodless — in these instances, political and revolutionary goals are achieved without any blood being shed or lives being lost. A different meaning of bloodless is "drained of blood" or "pale and white," as your face might look if you saw a ghost. The Old English word was blodleas — figuratively, it meant "powerless."
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.
Four years ago, Ms Turay set up the first Bondo society without FGM, called Alternative Rites or Bloodless Bondo.
From BBC • May 1, 2023
Bloodless revolution … some sparkling moments cannot disguise the essential coldness of Jonathan Grimwood's protagonist.
From The Guardian • Jul. 20, 2013
Bloodless, it fails to cut quite to the bone; it is only those inwardly dead in the play who ever seem outwardly alive.
From Time Magazine Archive
The triumph of democracy over apartheid is sometimes called the Bloodless Revolution.
From "Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood" by Trevor Noah
Treatment of the Bloodless State.—The patient should be placed in a warm, well-ventilated room, and the foot of the bed elevated.
From Manual of Surgery Volume First: General Surgery. Sixth Edition. by Thomson, Alexis
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.
