bastard

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.

It had bastard status among classical culturati from the get-go, which kept it out of the concert halls where it arguably belonged as a rightful heir to other long-form orchestral music.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 15, 2026

Leonardo da Vinci—whose very name indicates he’s from a place, rather than of a person—was one such bastard.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 23, 2025

Gov't Mule is kind of the bastard child of the jam scene – the black sheep – because we're heavier than other jam bands.

From Salon • Jun. 17, 2023

And I'm like, "Cheeky bastard, of course I'm OK to fly".

From BBC • Oct. 24, 2022

And Gabriel, scarcely believing that John could have become so brazen, stared in wrath and horror at Elizabeth’s presumptuous bastard boy, grown suddenly so old in evil.

From "Go Tell It on the Mountain" by James Baldwin