Meaning
- to experience something thrilling and exciting, and want to experience it again.
- to realize that an opponent is almost defeated.
- to sense weakness in another, encouraging an attack.
- to experience a violent or destructive sensation, and then develop an appetite for it.
- to achieve a small triumph and be encouraged to think that victory is within reach.
- achieved a small victory, which has made you believe you can win a more important victory.
Example Sentences
- Once a wolf has tasted blood, it has to be put down.
- Now that she has tasted blood, she is eager to meet her opponent on the field again,
- Once I had tasted blood bungee jumping, I knew I would have to do it again as soon as possible.
- He was proud of the fact that his terriers had never tasted blood.
- His army - better armed, better organized and having tasted blood after months of losing - now wants its own back.
- They have tasted blood and enjoyed it, and now they are going for the win.
- "He'll never leave you alone now that he's tasted blood," my mother warned, regarding the car salesman that wouldn't leave me alone.
- The British badminton pair tasted blood in the European championships and now want to play at the next Olympic Games.
Origin
The origin of the idiom "tasted blood" seems to mainly refer to the myth that dogs, if they kill another animal, will develop a "taste for blood," or turn aggressive upon tasting blood. Similarly, showing that certain animal predators can develop a taste for human blood, once they have tasted it and become serial killers of people.
In particular, there is a narrative most of us have probably been exposed to at some point, that if a dog gets the taste of blood in its mouth, it will go feral. This is not a proven fact, but it is known that dogs and other animals do possess a feral instinct. This animal instinct is what the usage of tasted blood in the above examples evokes. It's a primal state of being. The somewhat widely accepted possibility that an animal tasting blood will have it lunging for your throat is a likely source of the phrase. It denotes a somewhat savage desire for victory after wounding an opponent, be it in sports or any other competitive, aggressive interaction between individuals.
