bleed
Pronunciation: (blēd), [key]
— v., n., adj. bled bleed•ing,
—v.i.
- to lose blood from the vascular system, either internally into the body or externally through a natural orifice or break in the skin: to bleed from the mouth.
- (of injured tissue, excrescences, etc.) to exude blood: a wart that is bleeding.
- (of a plant) to exude sap, resin, etc., from a wound.
- (of dye or paint) to run or become diffused: All the colors bled when the dress was washed.
- (of a liquid) to ooze or flow out.
- to feel pity, sorrow, or anguish: My heart bleeds for you. A nation bleeds for its dead heroes.
- to suffer wounds or death, as in battle: The soldiers bled for the cause.
- (of a broadcast signal) to interfere with another signal: CB transmissions bleeding over into walkie-talkies.
- (of printed matter) to run off the edges of a page, either by design or through mutilation caused by too close trimming.
- to pay out money, as when overcharged or threatened with extortion.
- (of a cooling ingot or casting) to have molten metal force its way through the solidified exterior because of internal gas pressure.
—v.t.
- to cause to lose blood, esp. surgically: Doctors no longer bleed their patients to reduce fever.
- to lose or emit (blood or sap).
- to drain or draw sap, water, electricity, etc., from (something): to bleed a pipeline of excess air.
- to remove trapped air from (as an automotive brake system) by opening a bleeder valve.
- to obtain an excessive amount from; extort money from.
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- to permit (printed illustrations or ornamentation) to run off the page or sheet.
- to trim the margin of (a book or sheet) so closely as to mutilate the text or illustration.
- to draw or extract: to bleed off sap from a maple tree; to bleed off static electricity.
- See(def. 19).
—n.
-
- a sheet or page margin trimmed so as to mutilate the text or illustration.
- a part thus trimmed off.
- an instance of bleeding; hemorrhage: an intracranial bleed.
—adj.
- characterized by bleeding: a bleed page.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.