lifeblood: Meaning and Definition of

life•blood

Pronunciation: (līf'blud"), [key]
— n.
  1. the blood, considered as essential to maintain life: to spill one's lifeblood in war.
  2. a life-giving, vital, or animating element: Agriculture is the lifeblood of the country.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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