noun
lifeblood
LYF-bluhd
noun
1
Blood, viewed as essential to staying alive.
"The wound drained his lifeblood before help arrived."
2
Something absolutely essential to keeping a system, organization, or activity going.
"Tourism is the lifeblood of the local economy."
"Volunteers are the lifeblood of this charity."
How to Use Lifeblood
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishThe thing something absolutely depends on to keep going — usually used figuratively.
Common pairings
the lifeblood of the economy
lifeblood of a community
Word Forms
lifebloods plural
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Etymology
A compound of life + blood, formed to describe blood as the thing that sustains living creatures.