lifeblood of
14
4.9
- idiom
:
sustento de
- Small businesses are the lifeblood of this country.
Measurement is the lifeblood of science and progress.
- Measurement is the lifeblood of science and progress.
- We know the conspiracies are the lifeblood of the world.
Examples
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Rivers and waterways are the lifeblood of human culture.
Academic text (1995) -
Information is the lifeblood of the American economy.
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Water is the lifeblood of every living thing.
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The students are the lifeblood of research.
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This is the lifeblood of our organization.
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I mean, people like you are the lifeblood of the theater.
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Elections are the lifeblood of our democracy.
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Finding new customers for any business, big or small, is the lifeblood of its success and sustainability.
Blog text (15) -
I think of The Charlotte Observer as part of the lifeblood of our community.
Blog text (24) -
Information is the lifeblood of innovation and progress in society.
Synonyms
28
3.4
The most important part that holds a group or thing together
21
5.1
The thing that is most important for an organization or area's success
2
4.4
A thing like the sun or water that gives life to living things
1
3.5
An important thing needed for something to work or succeed
Antonyms
How Essential
Surface Forms
Morphology
lifeblood + of
The compound 'lifeblood' transparently extends the literal notion that blood sustains life to mean the essential sustaining element, and the construction 'lifeblood of X' uses a regular noun + of pattern to indicate what is being sustained. This metaphorical but directly motivated mapping is common across languages and easily inferable by learners who know the constituent words.
Etymology
Lifeblood of comes from the clear image of life and blood, since blood in the body keeps us alive and moving. So, calling something the lifeblood of a group means it is the 'essential' thing that keeps it going.