English
bastard
see also: Bastard
Etymology

From Middle English bastard, bastarde, from Anglo-Norman bastard, Old French bastart, perhaps via Medieval Latin bastardus, of obscure origin.

Possibly from Frankish *bāst + Old French -ard, -art.

Alternatively, Old French bastart may have originated from the Old French term fils de bast, meaning a child conceived on an improvised bed (medieval saddles often doubled as beds while travelling).

Pronunciation
  • (RP) IPA: /ˈbɑːs.təd/
  • (America) IPA: /ˈbæs.tɚd/
Noun

bastard

  1. (dated) A person who was born out of wedlock, and hence often considered an illegitimate descendant.
    Synonyms: love child, born in the vestry, illegitimate, Thesaurus:bastard
    • 1965, The Big Valley:
      Jarrod: Who are you?
      Heath: Your father’s bastard son.
  2. A mongrel biological cross between different breeds, groups or varieties.
  3. (vulgar, offensive or pejorative, usually, referring specifically to a man) A contemptible, inconsiderate, overly or arrogantly rude or spiteful person.
    Synonyms: son of a bitch, arsehole, asshole, Thesaurus:git, Thesaurus:jerk
    Some bastard stole my car while I was helping an injured person.
    You sick bastard!
    Don't be such a bastard already!
    I assume that bastard won't be seen again.
    • 1997, South Park television program:
      “Oh my God, they killed Kenny!” “You bastards!”
  4. (endearing or humorous) A man, a fellow, a male friend.
    lucky bastard
    funny bastard
    Get over here, you old bastard!
  5. (often preceded by ‘poor’) A suffering person deemed deserving of compassion.
    Poor bastard, I feel so sorry for him.
    These poor bastards started out life probably in bad or broken homes.
  6. (informal) A child who does not know their father.
  7. (informal) Something extremely difficult or unpleasant to deal with.
    Life can be a real 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.
    • 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...
  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.
  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.
  14. A writing paper of a particular size.
  15. (UK, politics, pejorative) A Eurosceptic Conservative MP, especially in the government of John Major.
Antonyms
  • legitimate
Translations Translations Translations Translations Translations Translations Adjective

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 musket
    a bastard culverin
    1. Spurious, lacking authenticity: counterfeit, fake.
      • a. 1678 (date written), Isaac Barrow, “(please specify the chapter name or sermon number). Of Self-conceit”, 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
    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.
  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 trumpeter
  6. (UK, Irish, vulgar) Very unpleasant.
    I’ve got a bastard headache.
  7. (printing) 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.
Translations Translations Translations
  • French: croisé
  • Russian: нечистокровный
Translations Translations Interjection
  1. (rare) Exclamation of strong dismay or strong sense of being upset.
Translations Verb

bastard (bastards, present participle bastarding; simple past and past participle bastarded)

  1. (obsolete) 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
Bastard
Proper noun
  1. Surname.


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