/bluːz/
OriginIn reference to the ancient Roman and medieval Byzantine racing faction, a calque of Latin venetī (“Sea-Blues”) or factio veneta (“the sea-blue faction”) and Byzantine Greek Βένετοι (Bénetoi, “Blues”).
- form-of, pluralplural of blue
- countable, informal, plural-normally, uncountableA feeling of sadness or depression.
“I've got the blues today.”
“The blues have hit her hard, and she won't get out of bed.”
“If we had been allowed to sit idle we should all have fallen in the blues […]”
- countable, in-plural, informal, plural-normally, singularOne's particular life experience, particularly including the hardships one has faced.
“Your blues is just like mine.”
“Your blues are just like mine.”
- countable, in-plural, informal, plural-normally, singularThe negative emotional state produced by a particular action, occupation, experience, or idea.
“I've got the lonely man's blues.”
“If you work here long enough, you'll have the butcher's blues just like me.”
- countable, uncountableA musical form, of African-American origin, generally featuring an eight-bar or twelve-bar blues structure and using the blues scale.
“Many great blues musicians came from the Mississippi Delta region.”
“A large portion of modern popular music is influenced by the blues.”
- countable, singular, uncountableA musical composition following blues forms.
“My next number is a blues in G.”
- countable, uncountableA uniform made principally of a blue fabric, and especially a full dress uniform thus colored.
“They marched in their dress blues.”
“You never planned on the bombs in the sand
Or sleeping in your dress blues.”
- countable, slang, uncountableAny of various blue pills sold on the street, mimicking the appearance of prescription pain killer tablets.
- form-of, indicative, present, singular, third-personthird-person singular simple present indicative of blue
- historical, informalThe chariot-racing faction of the Roman circus and Constantinopolitan hippodrome that wore blue.
“'Constantinople adopted the follies, though not the virtues of ancient Rome,' wrote Edward Gibbon, 'and the same factions which had agitated the circus raged with redoubled fury in the Hippodrome.' Gi”
- informalCarlton Football Club.
- informalNew South Wales.
- informalBirmingham City FC.
- informalEverton FC.
- informalChelsea FC.
- informalManchester City FC.
Formsblues(plural)