blood sport
3
7.1
- noun
- /blʌd spɔrt/
- NSFW
:
deporte sangriento
- Canadians debate this as a blood sport.
Examples
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The fixture was treated like a blood sport back then, and rightly so.
Blog text (30) -
It's a real blood sport.
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This is a professional blood sport.
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The circus is a blood sport, but it is sport.
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We treat relations as a blood sport: winners and losers.
Academic text (2000) -
Many Americans view MMA as both a novelty act and a blood sport.
Blog text (18) -
This is a blood sport—not a fancy Sunday afternoon tea in Newport.
Blog text (24) -
In ancient times, gladiators fought in arenas, making their battles a popular blood sport for spectators.
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Bullfighting is often criticized for being a blood sport that ultimately harms the animals involved.
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Many traditional blood sports have been banned due to animal welfare concerns.
Antonyms
How Violent
Surface Forms
Morphology
blood + sport
The compound combines 'blood' (evoking injury or bloodshed) with 'sport' (organized competitive activity), so the meaning 'a sport involving bloodshed or killing' is directly inferable from the parts. This compositional logic is cross-linguistically common, so an average B1 learner who knows both constituent words would generally understand the MWE.
Etymology
Blood sport may come from the literal image of blood from animals being shown during a sport or public game, like old hunts or bullfights watched by crowds. So it now means a 'sport' that involves killing or injuring animals for 'entertainment'.