Bastardization
noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 The making of a bastard or bastards; Having children out of wedlock or destroying the legitimacy of children's paternity. countable, uncountable
"Given the serious and long-lasting effects of bastardization, resolution of the paternity issue should be accomplished with the active participation of the court, rather than involvement that is limited to reviewing a previously-executed document."
- 2 an act that debases or corrupts wordnet
- 3 The creation of offspring from two different species; cross-breeding. countable, uncountable
"The uneven number discovered in the four species mentioned may have arisen in one of two ways : through bastardization, or through a mitotic abnormality, each of which possibilities may now be considered. In the case of bastardization of a germ cell with one chromosomal number by a germ cell from another species with a different number, the uneven number eleven might be secured if a paternal germ cell of a species A, with the normal chromosomal number twelve, fertilizes a maternal germ cell of a species B with the normal number ten."
- 4 declaring or rendering bastard wordnet
- 5 The combining of separate races in marriage or breeding; miscegenation. broadly, countable, uncountable
"This is a basis for a natural, even though slow, process of regeneration, which gradually eliminates racial poisonings as long as a basic stock of racially pure elements is still present and a further bastardization does not take place."
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- 6 Any change or neologism in language that is viewed as a degradation. countable, uncountable
"And, hang on a sec, isn't bastardisation a bastardisation of language anyhow?"
- 7 The creation of an inferior copy or version; corruption, degradation, or debasement. broadly, countable, uncountable
"In this manner they viewed traditional aspects of civilization as parts of the legitimate identity of a culture. Consequently, they could interpret religion as one meaningful way for each culture to deal with external reality rather than as a superstitious bastardization of reason."
- 8 Activities involving harassment, abuse or humiliation used as a way of initiating a person into a group. countable, uncountable
"The 'inspiration' for Dogs are Barking, Taylor avers, came from reading Coulthard-Clarke's history of Royal Military College, Duntroon, with its accounts of bastardization at the college, and from the author's experience of hearing fellow-officers reminisce about bastardization at the college."
Example
More examples"Given the serious and long-lasting effects of bastardization, resolution of the paternity issue should be accomplished with the active participation of the court, rather than involvement that is limited to reviewing a previously-executed document."
Etymology
From bastard + -ization.
Related phrases
More for "bastardization"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.