blood
The red fluid circulating through the body, carrying oxygen and nutrients to tissues.
Etymology
From Old English blōd, from Proto-Germanic *blōþą, probably from PIE *bʰleh₃- "to thrive, bloom, swell up" with a dental suffix. The exact PIE etymology is debated — the connection to "blooming" or "gushing" is plausible but not certain. Most other Indo-European languages use reflexes of *h₁ésh₂r̥ or *krewh₂- for blood; the Germanic word is an innovation.
The Journey: *bʰleh₃- → blood
*bʰleh₁-d-
*blōþą
blōd
blood
Cognates Across Languages
These words in other languages descend from the same PIE root *bʰleh₃-. They are not borrowings but independent inheritances from a common ancestor.
| Language | Word |
|---|---|
| Greek | kréas (flesh) |
| Latin | cruor |
| Sanskrit | kravís (raw flesh) |
| Old Irish | crú |
| Lithuanian | kraujas |
Did You Know?
English "blood" is a Germanic innovation with a disputed PIE etymology. Most other Indo-European languages use reflexes of *h₁ésh₂r̥ (like Latin sanguis or Greek haima) or *krewh₂- (like Latin cruor "raw blood"). The Germanic peoples coined their own word.
This word descends from the Proto-Indo-European root *bʰleh₃-. See the full root page for descendant trees, sound law references, and scholarly discussion.