blues

¹

[ blooz ]

noun

1. the blues, (used with a plural verb) depressed spirits; despondency; melancholy:

   This rainy spell is giving me the blues.

2. (used with a singular verb) Jazz.
   1. a song, originating with African Americans, that is marked by the frequent occurrence of blue notes, and that takes the basic form, customarily improvised upon in performance, of a 12-bar chorus consisting of a 3-line stanza with the second line repeating the first.
   2. the genre constituting such songs.

blues

²

[ blooz ]

noun

, (used with a plural verb)

1. any of various blue military uniforms worn by members of the U.S. armed services:

   dress blues.

2. a blue uniform for work; blue work clothes:

   a doctor in surgical blues.

3. Informal. police:

   The blues keep this neighborhood safe.

blues

¹

/ bluːz /

plural noun

1. a feeling of depression or deep unhappiness
2. a type of folk song devised by Black Americans at the beginning of the 20th century, usually employing a basic 12-bar chorus, the tonic, subdominant, and dominant chords, frequent minor intervals, and blue notes

Blues

²

/ bluːz /

plural noun

1. the Blues
   the Royal Horse Guards

blues

1. A kind of jazz that evolved from the music of African-Americans, especially work songs and spirituals (see also spirituals ), in the early twentieth century. Blues pieces often express worry or depression.

Derived Forms

• ˈbluesy, adjective

Other Words From

• bluesy adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of blues¹

First recorded in 1740–50; blue (in the sense “depressed in spirits; dejected; melancholy”)

Origin of blues²

blue, -s ³

Idioms and Phrases

see have the blues .

Example Sentences

My Playground Was a Ditch by the Train Tracks could be a nice blues album if you decide to keep doing work that doesn’t require your face.

From Outside Online

One of my favorite blues records was recorded in 1962 by Williams, a Louisianan guitarist who spent years in the Louisiana State Penitentiary before getting released.

From Time

I’ll need money and clothes, but not the gorgeous red blues guitar hanging on the wall.

From Time

After kicking his heroin habit temporarily for the first time, he soon emerged with a 10-minute, driving blues number that he reportedly jotted down on toilet paper during the session.

From Washington Post

Hill was a seasoned blues musician by the time he joined ZZ Top, having played bass with performers including Freddie King and Lightnin’ Hopkins.

From Washington Post

Ragtime, blues, country, jazz, soul, and rock and roll were all pioneered or inspired by black artists.

From The Daily Beast

Artists like Mick Jagger and Van Morrison obsessively revered and imitated African-American blues and rock musicians.

From The Daily Beast

You spice it with blues and skiffle music, and pickle it in alcohol and tobacco smoke.

From The Daily Beast

"Goin' Down Slow" Cocker and Elton John duetted on this blues cover on French music show Trafic Musique in 2005.

From The Daily Beast

English blues and rock singer Joe Cocker has died at age 70.

From The Daily Beast

She dressed in simple lines and quiet tones, dark blues and black, with only a broad lace collar and cuffs in neat relief.

From Project Gutenberg

The woods of the Undercliff sank softly to the blues and purple, the silver streaks and gorgeous shadows of the sea floor.

From Project Gutenberg

I shall hear of his having the blues and nervous attacks next, I suppose.

From Project Gutenberg

She made a white-robed, dusky figure against the deep blues of my big window.

From Project Gutenberg

I like the Wall of Troy design you are using, and the blues and gray will be a good combination.

From Project Gutenberg