bar sinister

bar sin·is·ter

B b

Transcription

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [bahr sin-uh-ster]
- /bɑr ˈsɪn ə stər/

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [bahr sin-uh-ster]
- /bɑr ˈsɪn ə stər/

Definitions of bar sinister words

noun bar sinister the condition, implication, or stigma of being of illegitimate birth 3
abbreviation BAR SINISTER bend sinister 3
noun bar sinister Heraldry. (not in technical use) a bend sinister or a baton. 1
noun bar sinister the proof, condition, or stigma of illegitimate birth. 1
noun bar sinister (heraldry, considered nonstandard) A bend sinister or baton sinister in a coat of arms. 0
noun bar sinister (Idiomatic) (euphemistic) The state or characteristic of having been born out of wedlock; illegitimacy; bastardy. 0

See all 7 definitions of bar sinister

Information block about the term

Origin of bar sinister

First appearance:

before 1815

One of the 39% newest English words

First recorded in 1815-25

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Bar sinister

noun

adjective

verb

adverb

pronoun

preposition

conjunction

determiner

exclamation

Full grammatical hierarchy of Bar sinister

bar sinister popularity

A pretty common term. Usually people know it’s meaning, but prefer to use a more spread out synonym. About 31% of English native speakers know the meaning and use word.

According to our data about 70% of words is more used. This is a rare but used term. It occurs in the pages of specialized literature and in the speech of educated people.

bar sinister usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for bar sinister

noun bar sinister

illegitimacy — the state or quality of being illegitimate.
bastardy — the condition of being a bastard; illegitimacy
bend sinister — a diagonal line bisecting a shield from the top right to the bottom left, typically indicating a bastard line

All 4 Synonyms of bar sinister