blue blood
Americannoun
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an aristocrat, noble, or member of a socially prominent family.
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aristocratic, noble, or socially prominent lineage or relatives.
They boasted a lineage of pure blue blood.
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of blue blood
1825–35; translation of Spanish sangre azul. See sanguine, azure
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.
It was Brown, a Rhode Island blue blood whose name now adorns an Ivy League university, who in 1790 financed Slater’s stolen ideas for a state-of-the-art cotton mill.
From Barron's ● Jan. 28, 2026
Long before Cignetti was laying waste to college football’s blue blood programs, his head coaching journey began in 2011 when he was hired by a once-proud Division II program called Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 13, 2026
No blue blood wants to fake excitement about schlepping to the Pop-Tart Bowl, no offense to those sentient Pop-Tarts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2025
The baseball world is sensing a Dodger vulnerability, as if there’s blue blood in the water.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 1, 2025
His customers have often included aldermen, ladies of quality, and blue blood bucks, but they received no more attention than did rougher and humbler patrons.
From Curiosities of Impecuniosity by H. G. Somerville
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
