bleed for

Verb

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

1. To feel great sympathy or compassion for; to mourn on account of.
   • He bleeds for the Negro, he bleeds for the Jew, he bleeds for the oppressed peoples.1967 July 7, William A. McWhirter, “How Art Swindlers Duped a Virtuous Millionaire”, in LIFE, volume 63, number 1, page 54
   • Also, I bleed for the welfare of our children among our growing population of feral underclass.2010, Mark A. Bruhwiller, The Last Dog Watch: A Memoir of a Wilful Young Lad, page 108
2. To suffer when fighting for.
   • In great emergencies peoples are saved by men who bleed for the people, who are willing to pay dear and deep for their devotion to righteousness.1896, The Methodist Review - Volume 78, page 787
   • Cæsar will bleed for Cleopatra, but Cleopatra, in her turn, must bleed for Cæsar.1898, Khalīl Saʻādah, Caesar & Cleopatra, page 318
3. To receive corporal or capital punishment for.
   • The contrite hears, he hears, and lives; Bleeds for his crimes, and heav'n forgives;1802, Hymns for Public Worship, page 48
   • He dies — the friend of sinners dies—Oh, how he bleeds for me, Lo!1860, The Chorus, Or, A Collection of Choruses and Hymns