bastardy
Americannoun
-
the state or condition of being a bastard; illegitimacy.
-
the act of begetting a bastard.
noun
Etymology
Origin of bastardy
1400–50; late Middle English < Anglo-French, Old French bastardie. See bastard, -y 3
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But Bracton does have a lot to say about monsters, duels, bastardy, concubines, sturgeon “and other royal fish,” the “pillory and the ducking-stool," and "a judgment with infamy.”
From Washington Post • May 9, 2022
That in heraldry, a bend sinister indicates bastardy.
From New York Times • Dec. 19, 2019
But the argument quickly picked up steam when the talk turned to bastardy among the bluebloods.
From Time Magazine Archive
To be called one's mother's son, as opposed to one's father's, was often an implication of bastardy, or at least a sign that one's paternity was unknown, whether divine or not.
From Time Magazine Archive
The law and its administration, on behalf of the parish, actually put a valuable premium on bastardy.
From Fragments of Two Centuries Glimpses of Country Life when George III. was King by Kingston, Alfred
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
