sanguis
[ˈsaŋ.ɡʷiːs]masculine
The English word blood is translated into Latin as sanguis. Wiktionary also lists cruor.
Meaning: vital liquid flowing in human and animal bodies (noun)
Ways to say it
| Latin | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| sanguis | [ˈsaŋ.ɡʷiːs] (Classical Latin, narrow) [ˈsaŋ.ɡʷɪs] (Classical Latin, narrow) |
masculine |
| cruor | [ˈkru.ɔr] (Classical Latin, narrow) [ˈkruː.or] (narrow) |
masculine |
The word refers to the vital liquid flowing in human and animal bodies.
Which one should you use?
While sanguis refers to the vital, flowing blood within the body, cruor refers to blood that has been spilled, clotted or is flowing from a wound.
How does it change in a sentence?
sanguis is a masculine noun. Its genitive singular form, meaning 'of the blood', is sanguinis and its accusative singular form is sanguinem. The related adjective for 'bloody' or 'pertaining to blood' is sanguineus.
Did you know?
- In English, the word 'sanguine' describes a positive or optimistic temperament, a concept that stems directly from the Latin sanguis and the ancient belief in blood-based temperaments.
- The English word 'raw' shares an unexpected ancestor with the Latin cruor, which refers to clotted or spilled blood.
- In Latin, cruor is often used in poetry to emphasize the gore and violence of a scene rather than just the biological fluid.
Examples in context
- Sanguis tuus ruber est.Your blood is red.This sentence is useful for describing the color of your blood using sanguis.Tatoeba #5054159 by alexmarcelo, translation #5332083 by honeygod
- Sanguis eius ruber est.His blood is red.This sentence is useful for describing the color of his blood using sanguis.Tatoeba #8918505 by alexmarcelo, translation #8423426 by deniko
- Sanguis meus rufior quam tuus non est.My blood is no redder than yours.This sentence is useful for comparing the redness of my blood to yours using sanguis.Tatoeba #8751503 by shekitten, translation #2750753 by _undertoad
- Sanguis martyrum semen christianorum.The blood of martyrs is the seed of Christians.
- Sanguis et vulnera.Blood and wounds.
- 18 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Quintus and Julia are looking at a medical text.
- QuintusSanguis est vita, nonne?Blood is life, isn't it?
- JuliaIta, Quinte, vere dicis.Yes, Quintus, you speak truly.
- QuintusCur sanguis est ruber?Why is blood red?
- JuliaNescio, sed est pulcher.I don't know, but it is beautiful.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “blood” translations and entries sanguis, cruor, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries cruor, sanguis, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
