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May 19, 2025
This week’s themeBloody words! This week’s words 
Cartoon: Dan Piraro Previous week’s theme Interesting usage examples 
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu GargLast month I went for a blood donation. Usually, I use that time for a quick nap, but that afternoon as I lay on the table hooked up to a needle random thoughts began circulating. If octopuses have blue blood (they do), does that make them more likely to be aristocrats? And instead of removing blood and storing it, why not supply fresh blood? When someone needs a pint, just hook them up to a donor. As fresh as it gets.1 The recipient and the donor can look in each other’s eyes. Where it’s coming from, where it’s going. As a side effect, we’d probably have fewer people like the one I met while grocery shopping. I was in a Trader Joe’s parking lot looking for a parking spot. I noticed a car pulling out and I pulled in. After I got out of the car and started walking toward the store, I heard a guy yelling, “I have been waiting five minutes for this spot.” In the crowd of cars I hadn’t seen that on the other side of the lane someone was waiting for that spot. My view was blocked by other cars. I realized my error and told him, “Sorry, I didn’t see you.” I went into the store and had forgotten all about it. This guy found a parking spot and came running behind me chasing me inside the store. I said again, “I’m sorry, I didn’t see you.” He replied, “I don’t want to hear anything!” It was just a parking spot. I wonder what someone like him would do if he lost something bigger, say a presidential election. Not much difference. A parking spot one might occupy for a few minutes, the presidential chair for a few years, but on the cosmic scale it’s all the same: a blip. I figured I’d let him vent, but then he added “Your culture ...” I put my hand up and said, “Stop! I don’t accept what you’re offering. It stays with you.”2 Then I turned toward the produce section. He huffed and went away. I began picking up items from my list: oranges (from Sanskrit naranga) avocados (from Nahuatl ahuacatl) bananas (from Wolof banaana) and more3 I wondered: If a parking spot gets someone’s blood boiling, what will they do when real stuff in life hits (and it sure does hit everyone, sooner or later). Have you checked your blood pressure lately? I don’t know who he was, but I hope he finds peace. And space. Preferably next to any store entrance. Anyway, back to blood. As it flowed out and the pouch filled, among other things I thought about words. I think about words no matter what’s flowing. I thought about words related to blood, many of which we use metaphorically. This week we’ll see some of them. What’s your experience with the red fluid? Have you received a transfusion? Have you donated? Have you thought about it?4 Share below or email us at words@wordsmith.org. As always, include your location (city, state). 1Yes, I know they screen blood before putting it in circulation, but surely we can come up with an instant filter like those we use for water while hiking. 2When I was growing up I read the story of Buddha ignoring a man’s insults. When asked why he said, “If I don’t accept what he gives, it stays with him. I’m no Buddha, nor a Buddhist, but this works for me. I just realized “Bloody Buddha” could be the start of a fun tongue twister. In some strains of English, that may be offensive, but hey, Buddha is enlightened. Literally, carries less weight, spreads more light. Live lightly. Or, live bloody lightly! 3Sanskrit: an ancient language of India Nahuatl: an indigenous language of Mexico that also gave us tomato and chocolate Wolof: a language of West Africa 4About 1/10 of total body blood is donated at a time. I think we can donate 10% of anything, especially something like blood that’s easily replenished in just a few weeks. I have a fear of needles. Each time I donate I get poked twice. I have to look the other way as the needle goes in my skin. But my mantra is the same as my blood type: Be positive. B+ sanguineous
PRONUNCIATION:
(sang-GWIN-ee-uhs)
MEANING:
adjective: 1. Relating to blood. 2. Of the color of blood. 3. Involving bloodshed. 4. Confident or optimistic. ETYMOLOGY:
From Latin sanguis (blood), which also gave us
sanguine,
sanguinary,
sanguinolency,
pur sang,
consanguineous,
consanguinity, and
sang-froid.
Earliest documented use: 1520.
USAGE:
“President Mahinda Rajapaksa has brought to end one of the most
sanguineous civil wars of our time.” S. Prasannarajan; Out of Colombo; India Today (New Delhi); Nov 25, 2013. “Apples, as they say, must not be compared to oranges, and certainly not blood oranges, which is perhaps the better analogy for this tart, tangy, and juicily sanguineous offering [the film John Wick: Chapter 4]. Michael O’Sullivan; One Great Action Set Piece After Another; The Washington Post; Mar 24, 2023. “The piece was ‘I Present Your Royal Highness,’ a canvas from 2018 ... layered with fleshy pinks and sanguineous swipes.” Rebecca Mead; Color Instinct; The New Yorker; Nov 18, 2024. See more usage examples of sanguineous in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary. A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Red roses for young lovers. French beans for longstanding relationships.
-Ruskin Bond, author (b. 19 May 1934)
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