Alternative forms

• bastid (pronunciation spelling)

Etymology

From Middle EnglishCategory:English terms inherited from Middle English#BASTARDCategory:English terms derived from Middle English#BASTARD bastard, bastarde, from Old EnglishCategory:English terms inherited from Old English#BASTARDCategory:English terms derived from Old English#BASTARD bastard (used as an epithet), from Anglo-NormanCategory:English terms derived from Anglo-Norman#BASTARD bastard, Old French bastart (“illegitimate child”), perhaps via Medieval LatinCategory:English terms derived from Medieval Latin#BASTARD bastardus, of obscureCategory:English terms with unknown etymologies#BASTARD origin.

Likely from FrankishCategory:English terms derived from Frankish#BASTARD *bāst (“marriage, relationship”) + Old French -ard, -art (pejorative suffix denoting a specific quality or condition). Frankish *bāst derives from a North Sea Germanic variety of Proto-GermanicCategory:English terms derived from Proto-Germanic#BASTARD *banstuz (“bond, connection, relationship, marriage with a second woman of lower status”), from Proto-Indo-EuropeanCategory:English terms derived from Proto-Indo-European#BASTARD *bʰendʰ- (“to tie, bind”) and is related to West Frisian boaste (“marriage, matrimony”), Middle Dutch bast (“lust, heat”), and more distantly to English boose (“cow-stall”). The term probably originally referred to a child from a polygynous marriage of heathen Germanic custom — a practice not sanctioned by the Christian churches.

Alternatively, and probably less likely, Old French bastart may have originated from the Old French term fils de bast (“packsaddle son”), meaning a child conceived on an improvised bed (medieval saddles often doubled as beds while travelling). However chronology makes this difficult, as bastard is attested in Old French from 1089 (Middle Latin bastardus as early as 1010), yet Old French bast (modern French bât), though attested since 1130 with the meaning of "beast of burden", doesn't acquire the specific meaning of "packsaddle" until the 13c., making it too late to have given rise to the terms bastard and bastardus with this sense. The French Centre National de Ressources Textuelles et Lexicales supports the Germanic theory further above as being most likely.^[1]

Pronunciation

• (UK)
  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈbɑːs.təd/Category:English 2-syllable words#BASTARDCategory:English terms with IPA pronunciation#BASTARD

    • Audio (UK):

      (file)

      Category:English terms with audio pronunciation#BASTARD
  • (Northumbria) IPA^(key): /ˈbæs.tæd/Category:English 2-syllable words#BASTARDCategory:English terms with IPA pronunciation#BASTARD
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈbæs.tɚd/Category:English 2-syllable words#BASTARDCategory:English terms with IPA pronunciation#BASTARD

  • Audio (US):

    (file)

    Category:English terms with audio pronunciation#BASTARD
• Rhymes: -ɑːstə(ɹ)d, -æstə(ɹ)dCategory:Rhymes:English/ɑːstə(ɹ)d#BASTARDCategory:Rhymes:English/ɑːstə(ɹ)d/2 syllables#BASTARDCategory:Rhymes:English/æstə(ɹ)d#BASTARDCategory:Rhymes:English/æstə(ɹ)d/2 syllables#BASTARD

Noun

bastard (countable and uncountable, plural bastards)Category:English lemmas#BASTARDCategory:English nouns#BASTARDCategory:English uncountable nouns#BASTARDCategory:English countable nouns#BASTARDCategory:English countable nouns#BASTARDCategory:English entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. (datedCategory:English dated terms#BASTARD) A person who was born out of wedlock, and hence often considered an illegitimate descendant.

   Synonyms: love child, born in the vestry, illegitimate; see also Thesaurus:bastard

   • 1965, The Big Valley:

     Jarrod: Who are you?
     Heath: Your father’s bastard son.

     Category:English terms with quotations#BASTARD

     Category:Quotation templates to be cleaned
2. A mongrel (biological cross between different breeds, groups or varieties).
3. (vulgar, offensiveCategory:English offensive terms#BASTARD or derogatoryCategory:English derogatory terms#BASTARD, usually referring specifically to a man) A contemptible, inconsiderate, overly or arrogantly rude or spiteful person.

   Synonyms: son of a bitch, arsehole, asshole; see also Thesaurus:git, Thesaurus:jerk

   Some bastard stole my car while I was helping an injured person.Category:English terms with usage examples#BASTARD

   You sick bastard!Category:English terms with usage examples#BASTARD

   Don't be such a bastard already!Category:English terms with usage examples#BASTARD

   I assume that bastard won't be seen again.Category:English terms with usage examples#BASTARD

   • 1997, South Park television program:

     “Oh my God, they killed Kenny!” “You bastards!”

4. (endearingCategory:English endearing terms#BASTARD or humorousCategory:English humorous terms#BASTARD) A man, a fellow, a male friend.

   lucky bastardCategory:English terms with collocations#BASTARD

   funny bastardCategory:English terms with collocations#BASTARD

   Get over here, you old bastard!Category:English terms with usage examples#BASTARD

5. (often preceded by ‘poor’) A suffering person deemed deserving of compassion.

   Poor bastard, I feel so sorry for him.Category:English terms with usage examples#BASTARD

   These poor bastards started out life probably in bad or broken homes.Category:English terms with usage examples#BASTARD

6. (informalCategory:English informal terms#BASTARD) A child who does not know their father.
7. (informalCategory:English informal terms#BASTARD) Something extremely difficult or unpleasant to deal with.

   Life can be a real bastard.Category:English terms with usage examples#BASTARD

8. A variation that is not genuine; something irregular or inferior or of dubious origin, fake or counterfeit.

   The architecture was a kind of bastard, suggesting Gothic but not being true Gothic.Category:English terms with usage examples#BASTARD

   • 1622, Francis Bacon, Bacon's History of the Reign of King Henry VII, Cambridge University Press, published 1902, page 62:

     There were also made good and politic laws that parliament, against usury, which is the bastard use of money...

     Category:English terms with quotations#BASTARD

     Category:Quotation templates to be cleaned
9. A bastard file.
10. A kind of sweet wine.
    • c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “Measure for Measure”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii], page 72, column 2:

      […] we ſhall haue all the world drinke browne & white baſtard.

      Category:English terms with quotations#BASTARD

11. A sword that is midway in length between a short-sword and a long sword; also bastard sword.
12. An inferior quality of soft brown sugar, obtained from syrups that have been boiled several times.
13. A large mould for straining sugar.
15. A writing paper of a particular size.

    Synonym: copy

16. (UKCategory:British English#BASTARD, politicsCategory:en:Politics#BASTARD, derogatoryCategory:English derogatory terms#BASTARD) A Eurosceptic Conservative MP, especially in the government of John Major.
    • 2000, Peter Hobday, Managing the message, Allison & Busby:

      If you are a politician, you make sure that you know all such references in case an interviewer suddenly asks, 'Are you one of the bastards in Mr Major's cabinet?'

      Category:English terms with quotations#BASTARD

    • 2011, Duncan Hall, A2 Government and Politics: Ideologies and Ideologies in Action, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 62:

      While John Major managed to get the Maastricht Treaty through parliament, despite the efforts of the “bastards” in his cabinet, the 2001 Conservative General Election campaign was fought on entirely eurosceptic lines.

      Category:English terms with quotations#BASTARD

    • 2014 September 23, Stanley Johnson, Stanley, I Resume: Further recollections of an exuberant life, Biteback Publishing, →ISBN:

      In the UK, Conservative Maastricht rebels (the 'bastards') almost brought down Conservative Prime Minister John Major's government.

      Category:English terms with quotations#BASTARD

    • 2014, Melvin J. Lasky, Profanity, Obscenity and the Media, Transaction Publishers, →ISBN:

      One “bastard,” the Minister for Wales, John Redwood (who mounted an unsuccessful campaign to displace the Tory chief, John Major), was removed in a Cabinet reshuffle; but was his young successor William Hague any more reliable?

      Category:English terms with quotations#BASTARD

    • 2020 September 3, Ian Buruma, The Churchill Complex: The Rise and Fall of the Special Relationship from Winston and FDR to Trump and Johnson, Atlantic Books, →ISBN:

      But there is no doubt that the “bastards,” who had tormented so many Tory leaders over the years, had won. The longed-for break with “Europe” had finally come, but at the same price that Americans paid for Trump's takeover of the Republican Party.

      Category:English terms with quotations#BASTARD

Adjective

bastard (comparative more bastard, superlative most bastard)Category:English lemmas#BASTARDCategory:English adjectives#BASTARDCategory:English entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. Of or like a bastard (illegitimate human descendant).
2. Of or like a bastard (bad person).
3. Of or like a mongrel, bastardized creature/cross.
4. Of abnormal, irregular or otherwise inferior qualities (size, shape etc).

   a bastard musketCategory:English terms with collocations#BASTARD

   a bastard culverinCategory:English terms with collocations#BASTARD

   1. Spurious, lacking authenticity: counterfeit, fake.
      • a. 1678 (date written), Isaac Barrow, “(please specify the chapter name or sermon number)”, in The Works of Dr. Isaac Barrow. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to VII), London: A[braham] J[ohn] Valpy, […], published 1830–1831, →OCLC:

        that bastard self-love which is so vicious in itself, and productive of so many vices

        Category:English terms with quotations#BASTARD

   2. (of a language) Imperfect; not spoken or written well or in the classical style; broken.
      • 1886 October – 1887 January, H[enry] Rider Haggard, She: A History of Adventure, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., published 1887, →OCLC:

        Of what race could these people be? Their language was a bastard Arabic, and yet they were not Arabs; I was quite sure of that.

        Category:English terms with quotations#BASTARD

5. Used in the vernacular name of a species to indicate that it is similar in some way to another species, often (but not always) one of another genus.

   bastard gemsbok; bastard mahogany; bastard toadflax; bastard trumpeterCategory:English terms with usage examples#BASTARD

6. (UKCategory:British English#BASTARD, IrelandCategory:Irish English#BASTARD, vulgarCategory:English vulgarities#BASTARD) Very unpleasant.

   I’ve got a bastard headache.Category:English terms with usage examples#BASTARD

7. (printingCategory:en:Printing#BASTARD) Abbreviated, as the half title in a page preceding the full title page of a book.
8. (theater lighting) Consisting of one predominant color blended with small amounts of complementary color; used to replicate natural light because of their warmer appearance.

   A bastard orange gel produces predominantly orange light with undertones of blue.Category:English terms with usage examples#BASTARD

Interjection

bastard!Category:English lemmas#BASTARDCategory:English interjections#BASTARDCategory:English entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. (vulgarCategory:English vulgarities#BASTARD, rareCategory:English terms with rare senses#BASTARD) Exclamation of strong dismay or strong sense of being upset.
   • 2001, Stephen King, “The Death of Jack Hamilton”, in Everything's Eventual, Simon and Schuster, published 2007, →ISBN, page 90:

     Jack says, “Oh! Bastard! I’m hit!” That bullet had to have come in the busted back window and how it missed Johnnie to hit Jack I don’t know.

     Category:English terms with quotations#BASTARD

   • 2004, Cecelia Ahern, PS, I Love You, Hyperion, →ISBN, page 7:

     “Yes, I’m hhhhowwwwwwcch!” she yelped as she stubbed her toe against the bedpost. “Shit, shit, fuck, bastard, shit, crap!”

     Category:English terms with quotations#BASTARD

   • 2006, Emily Franklin, Love from London, Penguin, →ISBN, page 212:

     “Isn’t she lovely?” Clem asks, hopefully rhetorically. “Oh, bastard. I’ve got to go—that’s my signal. […] ”

     Category:English terms with quotations#BASTARD

Verb

bastard (third-person singular simple present bastards, present participle bastarding, simple past and past participle bastarded)Category:English lemmas#BASTARDCategory:English verbs#BASTARDCategory:English entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. (obsoleteCategory:English terms with obsolete senses#BASTARD) To bastardize.
   • 1622, Francis, Lord Verulam, Viscount St. Alban [i.e. Francis Bacon], The Historie of the Raigne of King Henry the Seventh, […], London: […] W[illiam] Stansby for Matthew Lownes, and William Barret, →OCLC:

     After her husband's death she was matter of tragedy , having lived to see her brother beheaded , and her two sons deposed from the crown , bastarded in their blood

     Category:English terms with quotations#BASTARD

References

Further reading

• “bastard”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• “bastard”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
• “mongrel”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.

Anagrams

• Barstad, batards, tabards

Etymology

From OccitanCategory:Catalan terms derived from Occitan#BASTARD bastard.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [bəsˈtart]Category:Catalan terms with IPA pronunciation#BASTARD
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [basˈtaɾt]Category:Catalan terms with IPA pronunciation#BASTARD

Adjective

bastard (feminine bastarda, masculine plural bastards, feminine plural bastardes)Category:Catalan lemmas#BASTARDCategory:Catalan adjectives#BASTARDCategory:Catalan entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. illegitimate (born out of wedlock)
2. adulterated

Noun

bastard m (plural bastards, feminine bastarda, feminine plural bastardes)Category:Catalan lemmas#BASTARDCategory:Catalan nouns#BASTARDCategory:Catalan countable nouns#BASTARDCategory:Catalan entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Catalan masculine nouns#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. bastard (child born out of wedlock)

Further reading

• “bastard”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle EnglishCategory:Cornish terms borrowed from Middle English#BASTARDCategory:Cornish terms derived from Middle English#BASTARD bastard.

Noun

bastard m (plural bastardyon)Category:Cornish lemmas#BASTARDCategory:Cornish nouns#BASTARDCategory:Cornish entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Cornish masculine nouns#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. bastard

Mutation

References

• “bastard” in Cornish Dictionary / Gerlyver Kernewek, Akademi Kernewek.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈbastart]Category:Czech terms with IPA pronunciation#BASTARD
• Hyphenation: ba‧s‧tard

Noun

bastard m animCategory:Czech lemmas#BASTARDCategory:Czech nouns#BASTARDCategory:Czech entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Czech masculine nouns#BASTARDCategory:Czech animate nouns#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. bastard, love child (person born to unmarried parents)

   Synonym: levoboček

2. bastard, mongrel (biological cross between different breeds, groups or varieties)
3. bastard, asshole

Further reading

• “bastard”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
• “bastard”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989

Etymology

From Old FrenchCategory:Danish terms derived from Old French#BASTARD bastard.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bastard/, [b̥aˈsd̥ɑːˀd̥]Category:Danish terms with IPA pronunciation#BASTARD
• IPA^(key): /bastar/, [b̥aˈsd̥ɑːˀ]Category:Danish terms with IPA pronunciation#BASTARD

Noun

bastard c (singular definite bastarden, plural indefinite bastarder)Category:Danish lemmas#BASTARDCategory:Danish nouns#BASTARDCategory:Danish entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Danish common-gender nouns#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. crossbreed (an organism produced by mating of individuals of different varieties or breeds)

   Synonyms: hybrid, krydsning

2. mongrel (someone of mixed kind or uncertain origin, especially a dog)
3. (datedCategory:Danish dated terms#BASTARD) bastard (person who was born out of wedlock)

Alternative forms

• bastairt, bastart

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle EnglishCategory:Irish terms borrowed from Middle English#BASTARDCategory:Irish terms derived from Middle English#BASTARD bastard, from Old FrenchCategory:Irish terms derived from Old French#BASTARD bastard.

Noun

bastard m (genitive singular bastaird, nominative plural bastaird)Category:Irish lemmas#BASTARDCategory:Irish nouns#BASTARDCategory:Irish entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Irish masculine nouns#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. bastard

Mutation

References

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977), “bastard”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla [Irish–English Dictionary], Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “bastard”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
• de Bhaldraithe, Tomás (1959), “bastard”, in English-Irish Dictionary, An Gúm
• “bastard”, in New English-Irish Dictionary, Foras na Gaeilge, 2013–2026

Alternative forms

• bastarde, basterd, bastart

Etymology

From Anglo-NormanCategory:Middle English terms borrowed from Anglo-Norman#BASTARDCategory:Middle English terms derived from Anglo-Norman#BASTARD bastard; equivalent to bast (“illegitimacy”) +‎ -ardCategory:Middle English terms suffixed with -ard#BASTARD.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /basˈtard/, /ˈbastard/Category:Middle English terms with IPA pronunciation#BASTARD

Noun

bastardCategory:Middle English lemmas#BASTARDCategory:Middle English nouns#BASTARDCategory:Middle English entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD (plural bastardes)

1. an illegitimate child, especially a noble one; a bastard
2. a kind of fortified wine, often with spices added
3. (rareCategory:Middle English terms with rare senses#BASTARD) a heretic or sinner; one separated from one's deity
4. (rareCategory:Middle English terms with rare senses#BASTARD) a dog that isn't purebred; a mutt or mongrel
5. (rareCategory:Middle English terms with rare senses#BASTARD) a botanical tendril or offshoot

Adjective

bastardCategory:Middle English lemmas#BASTARDCategory:Middle English adjectives#BASTARDCategory:Middle English entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. coming not from wedlock, coming from bastardy; illegitimate
2. low-quality, inferior, imitation; of bad manufacture
3. (rareCategory:Middle English terms with rare senses#BASTARD) not purebred; of mixed lineage
4. (rareCategory:Middle English terms with rare senses#BASTARD) made using or incorporating fortified wine
5. (rareCategory:Middle English terms with rare senses#BASTARD) wrong, erroneous, incorrect

Alternative forms

• bastart

Etymology

From Old FrenchCategory:Middle French terms inherited from Old French#BASTARDCategory:Middle French terms derived from Old French#BASTARD bastard, from Late LatinCategory:Middle French terms derived from Late Latin#BASTARD bastardus.

Noun

bastard m (plural bastars, feminine singular bastarde, feminine plural bastardes)Category:Middle French lemmas#BASTARDCategory:Middle French nouns#BASTARDCategory:Middle French entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Middle French masculine nouns#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARDCategory:Middle French countable nouns#BASTARD

1. bastard (child born outside of wedlock)

Adjective

bastard m (feminine singular bastarde, masculine plural bastars, feminine plural bastardes)Category:Middle French lemmas#BASTARDCategory:Middle French adjectives#BASTARDCategory:Middle French entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. bastard

Etymology

From Medieval LatinCategory:Old French terms derived from Medieval Latin#BASTARD bastardus, of GermanicCategory:Old French terms derived from Germanic languages#BASTARD origin, possibly FrankishCategory:Old French terms derived from Frankish#BASTARD.

Noun

bastard oblique singular, m (oblique plural bastarz or bastartz, nominative singular bastarz or bastartz, nominative plural bastard)Category:Old French lemmas#BASTARDCategory:Old French nouns#BASTARDCategory:Old French masculine nouns#BASTARDCategory:Old French entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Old French masculine nouns#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. bastard (person conceived to unmarried parents)
   • 12th Century, Unknown, Raoul de Cambrai:

     Vos savez bien qe je sui de bas lin, [e]t sui bastars

     You know well that I am of low birth, and I am a bastard

     Category:Old French terms with quotations#BASTARD

2. (derogatoryCategory:Old French derogatory terms#BASTARD, usually vocative) bastard (insult)

Adjective

bastard m (oblique and nominative feminine singular bastarde)Category:Old French lemmas#BASTARDCategory:Old French adjectives#BASTARDCategory:Old French entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. bastard (conceived by unmarried parents)

Etymology

Borrowed from GermanCategory:Polish terms borrowed from German#BASTARDCategory:Polish terms derived from German#BASTARD Bastard or ItalianCategory:Polish terms borrowed from Italian#BASTARDCategory:Polish terms derived from Italian#BASTARD bastardo, from Late LatinCategory:Polish terms derived from Late Latin#BASTARD bastardus, from FrankishCategory:Polish terms derived from Frankish#BASTARD, possibly through Old FrenchCategory:Polish terms derived from Old French#BASTARD bastardus.^[1][2]

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbas.tart/Category:Polish 2-syllable words#BASTARDCategory:Polish terms with IPA pronunciation#BASTARD

• Audio:

  (file)

  Category:Polish terms with audio pronunciation#BASTARD
• Rhymes: -astartCategory:Rhymes:Polish/astart#BASTARDCategory:Rhymes:Polish/astart/2 syllables#BASTARD
• Syllabification: bas‧tard

Noun

bastard m persCategory:Polish lemmas#BASTARDCategory:Polish nouns#BASTARDCategory:Polish entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Polish masculine nouns#BASTARDCategory:Polish personal nouns#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. (literaryCategory:Polish literary terms#BASTARD) bastard (person who was born out of wedlock, and hence often considered an illegitimate descendant)

   Synonym: bękart

Noun

bastard m animalCategory:Polish lemmas#BASTARDCategory:Polish nouns#BASTARDCategory:Polish entries with incorrect language header#BASTARDCategory:Polish masculine nouns#BASTARDCategory:Polish animal nouns#BASTARDCategory:Pages with entries#BASTARDCategory:Pages with 12 entries#BASTARD

1. (biologyCategory:pl:Biology#BASTARD, of animals or plants) bastard, crossbreed, hybrid, mongrel (organism produced by mating of individuals of different varieties or breeds)

   Synonyms: (obsolete) bękart, hybryda, krzyżówka, mieszaniec