bend sinister
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.
That in heraldry, a bend sinister indicates bastardy.
From New York Times • Dec. 19, 2019
The scarpe is the diminutive of the bend sinister, and is half its size.
From The Manual of Heraldry; Fifth Edition Being a Concise Description of the Several Terms Used, and Containing a Dictionary of Every Designation in the Science by Anonymous
Remember that most all slang is of vulgar origin and bears upon its face the bend sinister of vulgarity.
From How to Speak and Write Correctly by Devlin, Joseph
An ordinary with its ends cut off, borne sinister as a mark of bastardy, and containing one fourth in breadth of the bend sinister; Ð called also bastard bar.
From Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (2nd 100 Pages) by Webster, Noah
To which I could only reply, "Madam, I have never yet discovered the bend sinister on our escutcheon."
