bastard
English
[edit]Etymology
[edit]![](http://178.128.105.246/cars-http-upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/Wyllelm_bastard.jpg/220px-Wyllelm_bastard.jpg)
From Middle English bastard, bastarde, from Anglo-Norman bastard, Old French bastart (“illegitimate child”), perhaps via Medieval Latin bastardus, of obscure origin.
Possibly from Frankish *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-Germanic *banstuz (“bond, connection, relationship, marriage with a second woman of lower status”), from Proto-Indo-European *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, 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
[edit]- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈbɑːs.təd/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ˈbæs.tɚd/
Audio (US): (file) Audio (UK): (file) - Rhymes: -ɑːstə(ɹ)d, -æstə(ɹ)d
Noun
[edit]bastard (countable and uncountable, plural bastards)
- (dated) 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.
- A mongrel (biological cross between different breeds, groups or varieties).
- (vulgar, offensive or derogatory, 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.
- 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!”
- (endearing or humorous) A man, a fellow, a male friend.
- lucky bastard
- funny bastard
- Get over here, you old bastard!
- (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.
- (informal) A child who does not know their father.
- (informal) Something extremely difficult or unpleasant to deal with.
- Life can be a real bastard.
- 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...
- A bastard file.
- 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.
- A sword that is midway in length between a short-sword and a long sword; also bastard sword.
- An inferior quality of soft brown sugar, obtained from syrups that have been boiled several times.
- A large mould for straining sugar.
- A writing paper of a particular size.
- (UK, politics, derogatory) 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?'
- 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.
- 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.
- 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?
- 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.
Usage notes
[edit]- (one born to unmarried parents): Not always regarded as a stigma (though it is one in e.g. canon law, prohibitive for clerical office without papal indult): Norman duke William, the Conqueror of England, is referred to in state documents as "William the Bastard"; a Burgundian prince was even officially styled Great Bastard of Burgundy.
- (male friend): "Bastard" used as a term of endearment is particularly characteristic of Australian English usage. See Appendix:Australian English terms for people for more.
Antonyms
[edit]Coordinate terms
[edit]- (illegitimate child): bastardess
Derived terms
[edit]- bastard agrimony
- bastard alkanet
- bastard ashlar
- bastard bar
- bastard big-footed mouse
- bastard cabbage
- bastard cabbage tree
- bastard camphor tree
- bastard cedar
- bastard coolibah
- bastard craps
- bastard-dom
- bastard dory
- bastard eel
- bastard eigne
- bastard file
- bastard gemsbok
- bastard grass
- bastard gumwood
- bastard halibut
- bastard hartebeest
- bastard hemp
- bastard hogberry
- bastard horn snake
- bastard indigo
- bastard ironwood
- bastard jarrah
- bastard mahogany
- bastard manchineel
- bastard mulga
- bastard myall
- bastard myrobalan
- bastard oak
- bastard operator from hell
- bastard pellitory
- bastard pennyroyal
- bastard pimpernel
- bastard pop
- bastard quiver tree
- bastard rattlesnake
- bastard rocket
- bastard saffron
- bastard sage
- bastard sandalwood
- bastard senna
- bastard sole (Microchirus azevia)
- bastard strangles
- bastard sturgeon (Acipenser nudiventris)
- bastard sugar
- bastard sword
- bastard tallow-wood
- bastard tamarind (Albizia julibrissin)
- bastard teak (Butea monosperma)
- bastard title
- bastard toadflax
- bastard trumpeter (Latridopsis forsteri)
- bastard turtle (Lepidochelys spp.)
- bastard type
- bastard umbrella thorn (Acacia luederitzii)
- bastard verdict
- bastard viol
- bastard white oak (Quercus austrina)
- bastard wing
- bastard yellowwood (Afrocarpus falcatus)
- brown bastard
- rat bastard, rat-bastard
- Rhineland bastard
Translations
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
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Adjective
[edit]bastard (comparative more bastard, superlative most bastard)
- Of or like a bastard (illegitimate human descendant).
- Of or like a bastard (bad person).
- Of or like a mongrel, bastardized creature/cross.
- Of abnormal, irregular or otherwise inferior qualities (size, shape etc).
- a bastard musket
- a bastard culverin
- 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. […], volumes (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
- (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.
- 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.
- (UK, Ireland, vulgar) Very unpleasant.
- I’ve got a bastard headache.
- (printing) Abbreviated, as the half title in a page preceding the full title page of a book.
- (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
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Interjection
[edit]bastard!
- (rare) 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.
Translations
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Verb
[edit]bastard (third-person singular simple present bastards, present participle bastarding, simple past and past participle bastarded)
- (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
References
[edit]- ^ Etymology and history of “bâtard”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Further reading
[edit]- “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
[edit]Catalan
[edit]Etymology
[edit]Pronunciation
[edit]Adjective
[edit]bastard (feminine bastarda, masculine plural bastards, feminine plural bastardes)
- illegitimate (born out of wedlock)
- adulterated
Derived terms
[edit]Noun
[edit]bastard m (plural bastards, feminine bastarda)
- bastard (child born out of wedlock)
Further reading
[edit]- “bastard” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
Czech
[edit]Pronunciation
[edit]Noun
[edit]bastard m anim
- bastard, love child (person born to unmarried parents)
- Synonym: levoboček
- bastard, mongrel (biological cross between different breeds, groups or varieties)
- bastard, asshole
Declension
[edit]singular | plural | |
---|---|---|
nominative | bastard | bastardi |
genitive | bastarda | bastardů |
dative | bastardovi, bastardu | bastardům |
accusative | bastarda | bastardy |
vocative | bastarde | bastardi |
locative | bastardovi, bastardu | bastardech |
instrumental | bastardem | bastardy |
Further reading
[edit]- “bastard”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935-1957
- “bastard”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989
Danish
[edit]Etymology
[edit]From Old French bastard.
Pronunciation
[edit]Noun
[edit]bastard c (singular definite bastarden, plural indefinite bastarder)
- crossbreed (an organism produced by mating of individuals of different varieties or breeds)
- mongrel (someone of mixed kind or uncertain origin, especially a dog)
- (dated) bastard (person who was born out of wedlock)
Inflection
[edit]common gender |
Singular | Plural | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
indefinite | definite | indefinite | definite | |
nominative | bastard | bastarden | bastarder | bastarderne |
genitive | bastards | bastardens | bastarders | bastardernes |
Irish
[edit]Alternative forms
[edit]Etymology
[edit]Borrowed from Middle English bastard, from Old French bastard.
Noun
[edit]bastard m (genitive singular bastaird, nominative plural bastaird)
Declension
[edit]
Bare forms:
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Forms with the definite article:
|
Derived terms
[edit]- bastard madra (“mongrel; pariah dog”, literally “bastard dog”)
- bastardaíocht f (“bastardy; blackguardism”)
Mutation
[edit]Irish mutation | ||
---|---|---|
Radical | Lenition | Eclipsis |
bastard | bhastard | mbastard |
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs. |
References
[edit]- Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “bastard”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, 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, 2013-2024
Middle English
[edit]Alternative forms
[edit]Etymology
[edit]From Anglo-Norman bastard; equivalent to bast (“illegitimacy”) + -ard.
Pronunciation
[edit]Noun
[edit]bastard (plural bastardes)
- an illegitimate child, especially a noble one; a bastard
- a kind of fortified wine, often with spices added
- (rare) a heretic or sinner; one separated from one's deity
- (rare) a dog that isn't purebred; a mutt or mongrel
- (rare) a botanical tendril or offshoot
Derived terms
[edit]Descendants
[edit]References
[edit]- “bastā̆rd, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2019-03-03.
Adjective
[edit]bastard
- coming not from wedlock, coming from bastardy; illegitimate
- low-quality, inferior, imitation; of bad manufacture
- (rare) not purebred; of mixed lineage
- (rare) made using or incorporating fortified wine
- (rare) wrong, erroneous, incorrect
Descendants
[edit]References
[edit]- “bastā̆rd, n. as adj.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2019-03-03.
Middle French
[edit]Alternative forms
[edit]Etymology
[edit]From Old French bastard, from Late Latin bastardus.
Noun
[edit]bastard m (plural bastars, feminine singular bastarde, feminine plural bastardes)
- bastard (child born outside of wedlock)
Adjective
[edit]bastard m (feminine singular bastarde, masculine plural bastars, feminine plural bastardes)
Descendants
[edit]- French: bâtard
Old French
[edit]Etymology
[edit]From Medieval Latin bastardus, of Germanic origin, possibly Frankish.
Noun
[edit]bastard oblique singular, m (oblique plural bastarz or bastartz, nominative singular bastarz or bastartz, nominative plural bastard)
- 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
- (derogatory, usually vocative) bastard (insult)
Adjective
[edit]bastard m (oblique and nominative feminine singular bastarde)
- bastard (conceived by unmarried parents)
Declension
[edit]Descendants
[edit]- French: bâtard
- → Galician: bastardo
- → Middle Dutch: bastaert
- → Middle English: bastard, bastarde, basterd, bastart
Polish
[edit]Etymology
[edit]Borrowed from German Bastard or Italian bastardo, from Late Latin bastardus, from Frankish, possibly through Old French bastardus.[1][2]
Pronunciation
[edit]Noun
[edit]bastard m pers
- (literary) bastard (person who was born out of wedlock, and hence often considered an illegitimate descendant)
- Synonym: bękart
Declension
[edit]singular | plural | |
---|---|---|
nominative | bastard | bastardzi/bastardy (deprecative) |
genitive | bastarda | bastardów |
dative | bastardowi | bastardom |
accusative | bastarda | bastardów |
instrumental | bastardem | bastardami |
locative | bastardzie | bastardach |
vocative | bastardzie | bastardzi |
Noun
[edit]bastard m animal
- (biology, 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
Declension
[edit]singular | plural | |
---|---|---|
nominative | bastard | bastardy |
genitive | bastarda | bastardów |
dative | bastardowi | bastardom |
accusative | bastarda | bastardy |
instrumental | bastardem | bastardami |
locative | bastardzie | bastardach |
vocative | bastardzie | bastardy |
Derived terms
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Mirosław Bańko, Lidia Wiśniakowska (2021) “bastard”, in Wielki słownik wyrazów obcych, →ISBN
- ^ bastard in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
Further reading
[edit]- bastard in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
- bastard in Polish dictionaries at PWN
Romanian
[edit]Etymology
[edit]Borrowed from Italian bastardo.
Noun
[edit]bastard m (plural bastarzi)
Declension
[edit]singular | plural | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
indefinite articulation | definite articulation | indefinite articulation | definite articulation | |
nominative/accusative | (un) bastard | bastardul | (niște) bastarzi | bastarzii |
genitive/dative | (unui) bastard | bastardului | (unor) bastarzi | bastarzilor |
vocative | bastardule | bastarzilor |
Swedish
[edit]Noun
[edit]bastard c
- a bastard (biological cross between different breeds, groups, or varieties)
- (dated, derogatory) a bastard (person born out of wedlock)
Declension
[edit]Declension of bastard | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Plural | |||
Indefinite | Definite | Indefinite | Definite | |
Nominative | bastard | bastarden | bastarder | bastarderna |
Genitive | bastards | bastardens | bastarders | bastardernas |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- English terms inherited from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle English
- English terms derived from Anglo-Norman
- English terms derived from Medieval Latin
- English terms with unknown etymologies
- English terms derived from Frankish
- English terms derived from Proto-Germanic
- English terms derived from Proto-Indo-European
- English 2-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English terms with audio links
- Rhymes:English/ɑːstə(ɹ)d
- Rhymes:English/ɑːstə(ɹ)d/2 syllables
- Rhymes:English/æstə(ɹ)d
- Rhymes:English/æstə(ɹ)d/2 syllables
- English lemmas
- English nouns
- English uncountable nouns
- English countable nouns
- English dated terms
- English terms with quotations
- English offensive terms
- English derogatory terms
- English terms with usage examples
- English endearing terms
- English humorous terms
- English terms with collocations
- English informal terms
- British English
- en:Politics
- English adjectives
- Irish English
- English vulgarities
- en:Printing
- English interjections
- English terms with rare senses
- English verbs
- English terms with obsolete senses
- English swear words
- en:People
- en:Wines
- en:Male people
- Catalan terms derived from Occitan
- Catalan terms with IPA pronunciation
- Catalan lemmas
- Catalan adjectives
- Catalan nouns
- Catalan countable nouns
- Catalan masculine nouns
- ca:People
- Czech terms with IPA pronunciation
- Czech lemmas
- Czech nouns
- Czech masculine nouns
- Czech animate nouns
- Czech masculine animate nouns
- Czech hard masculine animate nouns
- Danish terms derived from Old French
- Danish terms with IPA pronunciation
- Danish lemmas
- Danish nouns
- Danish common-gender nouns
- Danish dated terms
- Irish terms borrowed from Middle English
- Irish terms derived from Middle English
- Irish terms derived from Old French
- Irish lemmas
- Irish nouns
- Irish masculine nouns
- Irish first-declension nouns
- Middle English terms borrowed from Anglo-Norman
- Middle English terms derived from Anglo-Norman
- Middle English terms suffixed with -ard
- Middle English terms with IPA pronunciation
- Middle English lemmas
- Middle English nouns
- Middle English terms with rare senses
- Middle English adjectives
- enm:Botany
- enm:Dogs
- enm:Family
- enm:Nobility
- enm:People
- enm:Religion
- enm:Wine
- Middle French terms inherited from Old French
- Middle French terms derived from Old French
- Middle French terms derived from Late Latin
- Middle French lemmas
- Middle French nouns
- Middle French masculine nouns
- Middle French countable nouns
- Middle French adjectives
- Old French terms derived from Medieval Latin
- Old French terms derived from Germanic languages
- Old French terms borrowed from Frankish
- Old French terms derived from Frankish
- Old French lemmas
- Old French nouns
- Old French masculine nouns
- Old French terms with quotations
- Old French derogatory terms
- Old French adjectives
- Polish terms borrowed from German
- Polish terms derived from German
- Polish terms borrowed from Italian
- Polish terms derived from Italian
- Polish terms derived from Late Latin
- Polish terms derived from Frankish
- Polish terms derived from Old French
- Polish 2-syllable words
- Polish terms with IPA pronunciation
- Polish terms with audio links
- Rhymes:Polish/astart
- Rhymes:Polish/astart/2 syllables
- Polish lemmas
- Polish nouns
- Polish masculine nouns
- Polish personal nouns
- Polish literary terms
- Polish animal nouns
- pl:Biology
- pl:Animals
- pl:Multiracial
- pl:People
- pl:Plants
- Romanian terms borrowed from Italian
- Romanian terms derived from Italian
- Romanian lemmas
- Romanian nouns
- Romanian countable nouns
- Romanian masculine nouns
- Swedish lemmas
- Swedish nouns
- Swedish common-gender nouns
- Swedish dated terms
- Swedish derogatory terms