bled

Verb

bleed (third-person singular simple present bleeds, present participle bleeding, simple past and past participle bled)

1. (intransitive, animal or body part) To shed blood through an injured blood vessel.
   • If her nose bleeds, try to use ice.
2. (intransitive) To menstruate.
   • You haven't bled. It's been over a month since your arrival, and you haven't bled.2020 December 25, Chris Van Dusen, “Diamond of the First Water”, in Bridgerton, season 1, episode 1, spoken by Lady Portia Featherington
3. (transitive) To let or draw blood from.
   • "What did they die of?" I asked.
     "Fevers. The doctor came and bled them and purged them, but they still died."
     "He bled and purged babies?"
     "They were two and three. He said it would break the fever. And it did. But they ... they died anyway."1979, Octavia E. Butler, Kindred, Beacon Press (2024), page 239
4. (transitive) To take large amounts of money from.
5. (transitive) To steadily lose (something vital).
   • The company was bleeding talent.
6. (intransitive) To spread from the intended location and stain the surrounding cloth or paper.
   • Ink traps counteract bleeding.

See all 22 meanings of bleed