# Bleeding Verus Bloody (Brit Slang) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 3, 2011, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bleeding-verus-bloody-brit-slang/595081 "2011-09-03T18:14:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![EenaSheeshton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c57346/32.png) [@EenaSheeshton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EenaSheeshton)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2011, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bleeding-verus-bloody-brit-slang/595081/1 "2011-09-03T18:14:59Z")
I was reading the other thread about burke and I thought of this On some British shows, I’ve seen they use the word, bloody. Like a bloody lot of good it does me. Or bleeding lot of good it does me But other characters seem to say bleeding instead of bloody. I take it, though I’m not sure, that bloody is a mild cuss word in the UK but is there a difference between the terms bleeding and bloody. Or are they interchangeable basically? ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2011, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bleeding-verus-bloody-brit-slang/595081/2 "2011-09-03T18:28:59Z")
They’re interchangeable, but bloody is used a lot more often. ‘Bleeding’ is more often used in ‘bleeding hell.’ ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2011, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bleeding-verus-bloody-brit-slang/595081/3 "2011-09-03T19:03:15Z")
“Bleeding” is just a slightly old-fashioned euphemism for “bloody”, itself probably a euphemism originally, from the days when "bloody"was too strong for TV or polite society. Cf. “ruddy”, “blinking”, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Damfino](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Damfino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Damfino)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2011, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bleeding-verus-bloody-brit-slang/595081/4 "2011-09-03T19:47:08Z")
> [@Ximenean](#): > > “Bleeding” is just a slightly old-fashioned euphemism for “bloody”, itself probably a euphemism originally, from the days when "bloody"was too strong for TV or polite society. Cf. “ruddy”, “blinking”, etc. Yes, “bloody” is a euphemism for “by our Lady,” a religion related phrase which may have been blasphemous to use in public. ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2011, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bleeding-verus-bloody-brit-slang/595081/5 "2011-09-03T19:57:53Z")
> [@Damfino](#): > > Yes, “bloody” is a euphemism for “by our Lady,” a religion related phrase which may have been blasphemous to use in public. That’s one theory. Seems over-complicated to me, when “bloody” could simply be analagous to the many other visceral or scatalogical swear words that have been popular from time to time. ---
**Author:** ![nicole1912](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/9de0a6/32.png) [@nicole1912](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nicole1912)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2011, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bleeding-verus-bloody-brit-slang/595081/6 "2011-09-03T20:33:28Z")
> [@EenaSheeshton](#): > > I was reading the other thread about burke and I thought of this > > On some British shows, I’ve seen they use the word, bloody. > > Like a bloody lot of good it does me. Or bleeding lot of good it does me > > But other characters seem to say bleeding instead of bloody. > > I take it, though I’m not sure, that bloody is a mild cuss word in the UK but is there a difference between the terms bleeding and bloody. Or are they interchangeable basically? As you say, bloody is a very mild swear word in the UK - the sort of thing I’d be happy saying in front of my gran or my boss. And bleeding is basically the same, although I think there might be some class/regional connotations attached to it, maybe? I can’t think of a time when I’ve used bleeding as a swearword, personally, but I’ve heard it used, even on pre-watershed BBC, so it must be ok! ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2011, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bleeding-verus-bloody-brit-slang/595081/7 "2011-09-03T20:33:50Z")
I always thought “bloody” referred to God’s blood. Sort of like “zounds” was short for God’s wounds, or “blimey” originally meaning “God blind me”. “By Our Lady” sounds a little tame to me compared to “God’s blood”. ---
**Author:** ![Damfino](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Damfino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Damfino)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2011, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bleeding-verus-bloody-brit-slang/595081/8 "2011-09-04T22:42:40Z")
Yes, apparently there are many theories. This one was told to me by my teacher in primary school (in the 70s), along with the “Cor, blimey” derivation. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2011, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bleeding-verus-bloody-brit-slang/595081/9 "2011-09-05T16:58:43Z")
Bleeding (or, in pronunciation, ‘bleedin’) is just a slightly milder form of bloody. Sounds pretty old-fashioned, the sort of thing my grandfather might say in front of the kids whilst attempting, and pretty much failing, to temper his language (as there’s not much difference between the two). ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2011, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bleeding-verus-bloody-brit-slang/595081/10 "2011-09-06T00:29:26Z")
Bloody has apparently been covered in a [staff report](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1420/whats-the-origin-of-the-british-slang-word-bloody). They say that 'sblood (as in Hamlet’s, “'Sblood, do you think I am easier to be played on than a pipe?”) does come from “God’s blood”, but bloody has a different origin. [The Word Detective](http://www.word-detective.com/111097.html#bloody) says of the “By our lady” origin: “Almost certainly not.” ---
**Author:** ![BunnyTVS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BunnyTVS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BunnyTVS)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bleeding-verus-bloody-brit-slang/595081/11 "2011-09-07T00:23:42Z")
In TV or other media, there is a mild class distinction between the two. Upper class types may use ‘bloody’ but will never use ‘bleeding’. “I say, bloody good shot that man!” Conversely ‘bleeding’ is more likely to be used by characters you are supposed to regard as not even working class, but ‘Low Class’ or borderline criminals. Imagine Delboy Trotter “Bleedin’ 'eck Rodders!” In between those two steretypes it’s pretty much interchangeable, although it wouldn’t surprise me if there are regional variations. I live in the NE and ‘bleeding’ just doesn’t have as great an emphasis in our accents. ---
**Author:** ![Norse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a9adbd/32.png) [@Norse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Norse)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bleeding-verus-bloody-brit-slang/595081/12 "2011-09-07T07:04:13Z")
> [@BunnyTVS](#): > > In TV or other media, there is a mild class distinction between the two. Upper class types may use ‘bloody’ but will never use ‘bleeding’. “I say, bloody good shot that man!” This reminds me of a slightly funny line in an old Lord Peter Wimsey TV episode I saw back in the 70s or 80s: “Now, let us have a look at those bloody footprints… By the way, that was an adjective!” With all due disclaimers due to possibly failing memory on my side ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bleeding-verus-bloody-brit-slang/595081/13 "2011-09-07T20:34:54Z")
You’d hear the Duke of Edinburgh say ‘bloody’ but you’ll never hear him say ‘bleeding’