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Bloodhound

noun, slang

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A large scenthound famed for its ability to follow a scent many days old, over vast distances. This dog is often used as a police dog to track missing people, fleeing suspects, or escaped prisoners.

    "Someone stole our bloodhounds, but we got the backup bloodhounds to chase the first tier of bloodhounds."

  2. 2
    a breed of large powerful hound of European origin having very acute smell and used in tracking wordnet
  3. 3
    A detective or other person skilled at finding people or clues. figuratively, informal
  4. 4
    A bloodthirsty person. archaic

    "For now the despot’s blood-hounds with their prey, Unarmed and unaware, were gorging deep Their gluttony of death; the loose array Of horsemen o’er the wide fields murdering sweep, And with loud laughter for their tyrant reap A harvest sown with other hopes; […]"

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English blodhound, blodhond; equivalent to blood + hound. Cognate with Dutch bloedhond (“bloodhound”), Middle Low German blōthunt (“bloodhound”), German Bluthund (“bloodhound”), Danish blodhund (“bloodhound”), Swedish blodhund (“bloodhound”). The detective sense follows from the dog's ability to follow a trail.

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