What does "bastard" mean?
A person who was born out of wedlock, and hence often considered an illegitimate descendant.
Bastard
/ˈbɑːs.təd/ adj, intj, name, noun, verb, slang
adj, intj, name, noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A person who was born out of wedlock, and hence often considered an illegitimate descendant.
- Grammar: bastard is listed as adj, intj, name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: illegitimate, by-blow, illegitimate child, love child.
- Useful contrasts: angel, calmness, courteous address.
- Usage evidence: Go to school! You lazy bastard.
How to use "bastard"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "bastard" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "bastard" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "bastard" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "bastard" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
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- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
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Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "bastard" is acting as adj, intj, name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "illegitimate" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
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Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "bastard", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A person who was born out of wedlock, and hence often considered an illegitimate descendant. countable, dated, uncountable
"Jarrod: Who are you? Heath: Your father’s bastard son."
- 2 derogatory term for a variation that is not genuine; something irregular or inferior or of dubious origin wordnet
- 3 A mongrel (biological cross between different breeds, groups or varieties). countable, uncountable
- 4 insulting terms of address for people who are stupid or irritating or ridiculous wordnet
- 5 A contemptible, inconsiderate, overly or arrogantly rude or spiteful person. countable, derogatory, offensive, uncountable, usually, vulgar
"Some bastard stole my car while I was helping an injured person."
Show 13 more definitions
- 6 the illegitimate offspring of unmarried parents wordnet
- 7 A man, a fellow, a male friend. countable, endearing, humorous, uncountable
"lucky bastard"
- 8 A suffering person deemed deserving of compassion. countable, uncountable
"Poor bastard, I feel so sorry for him."
- 9 A child who does not know their father. countable, informal, uncountable
- 10 Something extremely difficult or unpleasant to deal with. countable, informal, uncountable
"Life can be a real bastard."
- 11 A variation that is not genuine; something irregular or inferior or of dubious origin, fake or counterfeit. countable, uncountable
"The architecture was a kind of bastard, suggesting Gothic but not being true Gothic."
- 12 A bastard file. countable, uncountable
- 13 A kind of sweet wine. countable, uncountable
"[…] we ſhall haue all the world drinke browne & white baſtard."
- 14 A sword that is midway in length between a short-sword and a long sword; also bastard sword. countable, uncountable
- 15 An inferior quality of soft brown sugar, obtained from syrups that have been boiled several times. countable, uncountable
- 16 A large mould for straining sugar. countable, uncountable
- 17 A writing paper of a particular size. countable, uncountable
- 18 A Eurosceptic Conservative MP, especially in the government of John Major. UK, countable, derogatory, uncountable
"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?'"
Verb
- 1 To bastardize. obsolete
"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"
Adjective
- 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"
- 5 Of abnormal, irregular or otherwise inferior qualities (size, shape etc).; Spurious, lacking authenticity: counterfeit, fake.
"that bastard self-love which is so vicious in itself, and productive of so many vices"
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 Of abnormal, irregular or otherwise inferior qualities (size, shape etc).; Imperfect; not spoken or written well or in the classical style; broken.
"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."
- 7 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"
- 8 Very unpleasant. Ireland, UK, vulgar
"I’ve got a bastard headache."
- 9 Abbreviated, as the half title in a page preceding the full title page of a book.
- 10 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."
Adjective
- 1 fraudulent; having a misleading appearance wordnet
Intj
- 1 Exclamation of strong dismay or strong sense of being upset. rare
"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."
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname from Old French.
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"Go to school! You lazy bastard."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "bastard"?
Common synonyms include: illegitimate, by-blow, illegitimate child, love child, whoreson, affected.
How do you use "bastard" in a sentence?
Go to school! You lazy bastard.
How do you pronounce "bastard"?
Pronounced /ˈbɑːs.təd/.
Etymology
From Middle English bastard, bastarde, from Old English bastard (used as an epithet), from Anglo-Norman bastard, Old French bastart (“illegitimate child”), perhaps via Medieval Latin bastardus, of obscure origin. Likely 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, 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.