flesh and blood
Americannoun
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offspring or relatives.
one's own flesh and blood.
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the human body or nature.
more than flesh and blood can endure.
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Human beings, especially with respect to their failings or weaknesses. For example, I can't do everything—I'm only flesh and blood . [c. 1600]
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one's own flesh and blood . One's blood relatives, kin, as in She can't cut her own flesh and blood out of her will . [c. 1300]
Etymology
Origin of flesh and blood
First recorded in 1200–50
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.
Does consciousness require flesh and blood to exist?
From Science Daily ● Jun. 24, 2026
Dude No. 1 will always be Brady, a sixth-round pick now immortalized outside Gillette Stadium with a behemoth bronze statue that’s probably only a tick slower in the 40 than the flesh and blood original.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2025
Often, it's the first time a medical student works with real flesh and blood - an experience that can't be replicated from a textbook.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2025
Behind the headlines and beyond the numbers, flesh and blood people are cut off from basic necessities, including food, clean water, and medical care.
From Salon ● Aug. 3, 2025
This is Zero, in real life, flesh and blood.
From "Warcross" by Marie Lu
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.
