English

Alternative forms

• bloudy (obsolete)

Pronunciation

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /ˈblʌ.di/
• Rhymes: -ʌdi

Adjective

bloody ‎(comparative bloodier, superlative bloodiest)

1. Covered in blood.

   All that remained of his right hand after the accident was a bloody stump.

   • c. 1590-96, William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Act 5, Scene 1, 2008 [1947], Forgotten Books, page 84,

     And, as she fled, her mantle she did fall, / Which Lion vile with bloody mouth did stain.

   • 2011, William Shakespeare, Jonathan Bate, Eric Rasmussen, Julius Caesar, analysis of Act 2 Scene 1, 100,

     They plan to walk to the market-place, showing their bloody hands and swords and declaring ‘Peace, freedom and liberty!’

2. Characterised by bloodshed.

   There have been bloody battles between the two tribes.

   • Shakespeare

     Some bloody passion shakes your very frame.

   • 1845, Frederick Douglass, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, 2008, page 5,

     I had therefore been, until now, out of the way of the bloody scenes that often occurred on the plantation.

   • 2007, Lucinda Mallows, Lucy Mallows, Slovakia: The Bradt Travel Guide, page 169,

     The story of Elizabeth Bathory is one of the bloodiest in history.

3. (Australia, New Zealand, Britain, colloquial, mildly vulgar, not comparable) Used as an intensifier.
   • 1994, Robert Jordan, Lord of Chaos, page 519,

     Try to keep those bloody women's bloody heads on their bloody shoulders by somehow helping them make this whole mad impossible scheme actually work.

   • 2003, Mark Haddon, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, page 64,

     You are not to go asking anyone about who killed that bloody dog.

   • 2007, James MacFarlane, Avenge My Kin, Book 2: A Time of Testing, page 498,

     “You bloody fool, I could′ve stabbed you in the heart,” David said in mock anger, and then smiled widely.

4. (dated) Badly behaved; unpleasant; beastly.
   • 1945, Evelyn Waugh, Brideshead Revisited

     Come to apologize to Charles. I was bloody to him and he's my guest. He's my guest and my only friend and I was bloody to him.

Synonyms

• (covered in blood): bleeding, bloodied, gory, sanguinolent
• (intensifier): bally, blasted, bleeding (chiefly British cockney), blinking, blooming, damn, damned, dang, darned, doggone, flaming, freaking, fricking, frigging, ****, goddam / goddamn, goddamned, godforsaken (rare), wretched, rotten
• See also Wikisaurus:damned

Translations

Derived terms

Adverb

bloody ‎(comparative more bloody, superlative most bloody)

1. (Australia, New Zealand, Britain, mildly vulgar) Used to intensify what follows this adverb.

   1994: Robert Jordan, Lord of Chaos, 109 - "Dice are no bloody good," David said.

Synonyms

• bloody well
• bally, blasted, bleeding, blooming

Translations

Verb

bloody ‎(third-person singular simple present bloodies, present participle bloodying, simple past and past participle bloodied)

1. To draw blood from one's opponent in a fight.
2. To demonstrably harm the cause of an opponent.

Translations

Etymology 2

Clipping of bloody mary

Noun

bloody ‎(plural bloodies)

1. (casual) bloody mary

Anagrams

• old boy