adjective
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accompanied by much bloodshed
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bloodthirsty
-
consisting of, flowing, or stained with blood
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of sanguinary
First recorded in 1540–50, sanguinary is from the Latin word sanguinārius bloody. See sanguine, -ary
Explanation
When something is sanguinary it involves a lot of blood or, at least, the pursuit of blood. Vampire movies are sanguinary: Romper Room is not. If you're familiar with French, then you'll recognize the French word for "blood," sang, in sanguinary. And if you do, then you'll have no trouble remembering the meaning, "having a bloodthirsty quality." Movies have become increasingly sanguinary. Why all the blood and gore? What happened to good old-fashioned suspense?
Vocabulary lists containing sanguinary
Frankenstein
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Quiz yourself on these words spoken by the man at the center of the "Laurel" / "Yanny" craze!
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Peter Pan
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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.
On Sunday, Barker shared graphic photos of his blood-stained pants and sanguinary phalanges, which took a beating after Blink-182’s set in Manchester, England.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 16, 2023
“Based on a True Story” could have been a sanguinary sendup of the media impulse to turn slashers into celebrities, a kind of “Sweeney Pod.”
From New York Times • Jun. 12, 2023
His Anglican church was the product of sanguinary religious wars of the 16th and 17th centuries, and he witnessed anti-colonial uprisings throughout Africa.
From Washington Post • Dec. 28, 2021
First, he said that the justice system was so necessarily severe that without “an easy access to exceptions in favor of unfortunate guilt, justice would wear a countenance too sanguinary and cruel.”
From Slate • Jan. 5, 2017
I could explain it by arguing that profiting from a pitiful flying fish’s navigational mistake made me shy and sorrowful, while the excitement of actively capturing a great dorado made me sanguinary and self-assured.
From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel
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.
