SANGUINARY

bloodthirsty, bloody-minded, sanguinary

(adjective) marked by eagerness to resort to violence and bloodshed; “bloody-minded tyrants”; “bloodthirsty yells”; “went after the collaborators with a sanguinary fury that drenched the land with blood”-G.W.Johnson

gory, sanguinary, sanguineous, slaughterous, butcherly

(adjective) accompanied by bloodshed; “this bitter and sanguinary war”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Adjective

sanguinary (comparative more sanguinary, superlative most sanguinary)

(of an event) Involving bloodshed.

Synonyms: bloody, gory

(of a person) Eager to shed blood; bloodthirsty.

Synonyms: bloodthirsty, bloody-minded, butcherous, slaughterous

(of an object) Consisting of, covered with, or similar in appearance to blood.

Synonyms: bloodsoaked, bloody, gory

Usage notes

• Not to be confused with sanguine. Sanguine can mean “optimistic”, while sanguinary means “bloodthirsty, gory”.

Noun

sanguinary (plural sanguinaries)

A bloodthirsty person.

The plant common yarrow, or herba sanguinaria (Achillea millefolium).

Source: Wiktionary

San"gui*na*ry, a. Etym: [L. sanguinarius, fr. sanguis blood: cf. F.sanguinaire.]

1. Attended with much bloodshed; bloody; murderous; as, a sanguinary war, contest, or battle. We may not propagate religion by wars, or by sanguinary persecutions to force consciences. Bacon.

2. Bloodthirsty; cruel; eager to shed blood. Passion . . . makes us brutal and sanguinary. Broome.

San"gui*na*ry, n. Etym: [L. herba sanguinaria an herb that stanches blood: cf. F. sanguinaire. See Sanguinary, a.] (Bot.) (a) The yarrow. (b) The Sanguinaria.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition