BLOODLETTING

bloodbath, bloodletting, bloodshed, battue

(noun) indiscriminate slaughter; “a bloodbath took place when the leaders of the plot surrendered”; “ten days after the bloodletting Hitler gave the action its name”; “the valley is no stranger to bloodshed and murder”; “a huge prison battue was ordered”

bloodletting

(noun) formerly used as a treatment to reduce excess blood (one of the four humors of medieval medicine)

Source: WordNet® 3.1

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Etymology

Noun

bloodletting (plural bloodlettings)

(historical, medicine) The archaic practice of treating illness by removing some blood, believed to be tainted, from the stricken person.

Synonym: bleeding

(by extension) The diminishment of any resource with the hope that this will lead to a positive effect.

A circumstance, such as a battle, where a large amount of blood is likely to be spilled through violence.

Verb

bloodletting

present participle of bloodlet

Source: Wiktionary

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Blood"let`ting, n. (Med.)

Definition: The act or process of letting blood or bleeding, as by opening a vein or artery, or by cupping or leeches; -- esp. applied to venesection.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

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