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PlainSpell

bastard

/ˈbæs.tɚd/noun, adjective, interjection

bastard is spelled B-A-S-T-A-R-D: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 7.8 times per million words in written English, the 8,417th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, bastard means “A person who was born out of wedlock, and hence often considered an illegitimate descendant” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of bastard is bastards.

How many letters and syllables are in bastard?

Letters7: B-A-S-T-A-R-D
Syllables2 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing7.8 times per million words; the 8,417th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search
Rhymes with

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.

How common is bastard?

Bastard appears 7.8 times per million words in written English, the 8,417th most frequent word form in the list.

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce bastard?

  • UK /ˈbɑːs.təd/
  • /ˈbæs.tæd/
  • US /ˈbæs.tɚd/

Bastard has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-uk-bastard.ogg, En-us-bastard.oga, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

What rhymes with bastard?

One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as bastard from its last stressed vowel (/æstəɹd/):

Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).

Forms of bastard

  • bastards plural, present, singular, he/she/it
  • bastid
  • more bastard comparative
  • most bastard superlative
  • bastard!
  • bastarding participle, present
  • bastarded participle, past

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does bastard mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

noun

  1. 1

    datedA person who was born out of wedlock, and hence often considered an illegitimate descendant.

  2. 2

    A mongrel (biological cross between different breeds, groups or varieties).

  3. 3

    derogatoryoffensivevulgarA contemptible, inconsiderate, overly or arrogantly rude or spiteful person.

    Some bastard stole my car while I was helping an injured person.

  4. 4

    A man, a fellow, a male friend.

    lucky bastard

  5. 5

    A suffering person deemed deserving of compassion.

    Poor bastard, I feel so sorry for him.

  6. 6

    informalA child who does not know their father.

  7. 7

    informalSomething extremely difficult or unpleasant to deal with.

    Life can be a real bastard.

  8. 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.

adjective

  1. 1

    Of or like a bastard (illegitimate human descendant).

  2. 2

    Of or like a bastard (bad person).

  3. 3

    Of or like a mongrel, bastardized creature/cross.

  4. 4

    Of abnormal, irregular or otherwise inferior qualities (size, shape etc).

    a bastard musket

  5. 5

    Spurious, lacking authenticity: counterfeit, fake.

  6. 6

    Imperfect; not spoken or written well or in the classical style; broken.

  7. 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. 8

    IrelandUKvulgarVery unpleasant.

    I’ve got a bastard headache.

interjection

  1. 1

    rarevulgarExclamation of strong dismay or strong sense of being upset.

verb

  1. 1

    obsoleteTo bastardize.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Bastard in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchbâtard, bâtarde (person born to unmarried parents), croisé (mongrel), fils de pute, salopard (contemptible etc. person), simili (of abnormal, irregular or otherwise inferior…)
GermanBastard, Bastardin, Bankert, Kegel (person born to unmarried parents), Mistkerl (contemptible etc. person), Bastard! (exclamation of dismay)
Portuguesebastardo, bastarda (person born to unmarried parents), mestiço (mongrel), filho da mãe, sacana, filho da puta (contemptible etc. person)
Spanishbastardo, bastarda (person born to unmarried parents), desgraciado, hijo de puta, cabrón, tipejo (contemptible etc. person)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.

Where does bastard come from?

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).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What to look up after bastard