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Glite Dictionary
to bleed white

to bleed white

8.9
To lose all energy or resources until nothing is left
  • phrasal verb
  • /blid waɪt/
  • Informal
translation icon : agotar
  • Their country was bled white, weakened to a dangerous extent.

Examples

  • Many communities were bled white during the economic crisis, struggling to survive with dwindling resources.

  • Bled white.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • They've been bled white doing counterinsurgency missions in the past decade, just like their Army counterparts.

    Blog text (18)

  • However, by July 1863, New York's Irish American community had been bled white at Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, and scores of smaller battles.

    Blog text (13)

  • After years of continuous layoffs, the company was bled white of its talented employees.

  • The team was bled white after a grueling season, leaving them exhausted and in need of rest.

Synonyms

to wash out
vsto bleed white
  • Informal
1 4.8

Make someone feel very weak and tired

is becoming extremely exhausted rather than causing weakness

Antonyms

to energize
  • US
65 3.7

To make someone feel more active and alert

to revitalize
  • US
45 4.8

To give new life and energy to something

How Exhausted

to bleed white
  • Informal
8.9
collapse
350 4.1
to wear out
19 2.7
to drain
189 3.4
to tire
23 1.0

Surface Forms

bleed white infinitive
bleeding white present participle
bleeds white third person singular
bled white past
bled white past participle

Morphology

bleed + white

The sense 'to become extremely exhausted or drained' is not transparently derived from the literal meanings of 'bleed' (to lose blood or to take from someone) and 'white' (a colour); 'white' does not signal depletion in an obvious way to a B1 learner. This is a metaphorical/idiomatic extension (similar to 'bleed dry') and so the specific meaning is unpredictable without prior exposure.

Etymology

The phrase bleed white may come from the image of a cloth bleeding its color until only the white is left, like when you wash a shirt and the color runs out. So, to say someone was bled white means they were completely 'drained' of energy or money.