English Explanatory Dictionary

sanguine

English dictionary entry

Meanings

adj
  1. Having the colour of blood; blood red.
  2. Having a bodily constitution characterised by a preponderance of blood over the other bodily humours, thought to be marked by irresponsible mirth; indulgent in pleasure to the exclusion of important matters.
  3. Characterized by abundance and active circulation of blood.
  4. Warm; ardent.
  5. Anticipating the best; optimistic; confident; full of hope.
  6. Full of blood; bloody.
  7. Bloodthirsty.
noun
  1. Blood colour; red.
  2. Anything of a blood-red colour, as cloth.
  3. A tincture, seldom used, of a blood-red colour (not to be confused with murrey).
  4. Bloodstone.
  5. Red crayon.
verb
  1. To stain with blood; to impart the colour of blood to; to ensanguine.

Pronunciation

/ˈsæŋ.ɡwɪn/ /ˈseɪ̯ŋ.ɡwɪn/ en-us-sanguine.ogg

Word forms

sanguine more sanguine most sanguine sanguines sanguining sanguined

Etymology

From Middle English sanguine, from Old French sanguin, ultimately from Latin sanguineus (“of blood”), from sanguis (“blood”) (of uncertain origin, but probably from Proto-Indo-European *h₁sh₂-én-, from *h₁ésh₂r̥ (“blood”), with an obscure suffix such as *-ǵʰ- (related to body parts)) + -inus + -eus. The obsolete medical sense is in reference to the humour (blood) which ancient Hippocratic and later Galenic medicine associated with cheerfulness, optimism, confidence, liveliness, and spiritedness. Doublet of sanguineous.

Synonyms

incarnadine debaucherous sybaritic animated buoyant spirited assured bright bullish cheerful cheery confident hopeful optimistic positive ridibund upbeat bloodied gory sanguinolent bloodlusty homicidal murderous

Antonyms

blue despondent gloomy pessimistic

Related words

exsanguinate sangaree sangria

Derived words

consanguine exsanguine nonsanguine oversanguine sanguinary sanguineless sanguinely sanguineness sanguineobilious sanguineocholeric sanguineophlegmatic sanguinism sanguinity sanguinously serosanguine ultrasanguine unsanguine
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