beard

1 of 2

noun

ˈbird 

1

: the hair that grows on a man's face often excluding the mustache

2

: a hairy or bristly appendage or tuft

3

: front sense 7a

beardless

ˈbird-ləs 

adjective

beard

2 of 2

verb

bearded; bearding; beards

transitive verb

1

: to confront and oppose with boldness, resolution, and often effrontery : defy

2

: to furnish with a beard

Synonyms

Verb

• brave
• brazen
• breast
• confront
• dare
• defy
• face
• outbrave
• outface

Examples of beard in a Sentence

Noun

He grew a beard and mustache.

the beard of a goat

Verb

a man of integrity who was never afraid to beard the lion in his den

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Peter Fink is blond and fresh-faced, and grows a beard just to look his age. —Emily Baumgaertner, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2024

Up close, Bartholomew has a rosy, patchy complexion, and his white beard looks almost like a rectangle of smoke spreading south from his chin. —Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2024

The 27-year-old had unruly black hair, a boy-band face, and a patchy beard. —Leif Wenar, WIRED, 2 Apr. 2024

America's boyfriend, 54, has a touch of gray in his beard now, only deepening his universal appeal. —Hedy Phillips, Peoplemag, 21 Mar. 2024

Also, at the time, beards were modern and fashionable because of Lincoln, but also because razors hadn’t evolved that much. —William Earl, Variety, 16 Mar. 2024

Stern is seventy-one, with a scruffy white beard and a taste for casual attire. —Eyal Press, The New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2024

Wide Shut masks that, of course, left mouths and pointed, Viking-style beards (too many of these to count) well exposed. —Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 12 Mar. 2024

It was also embraced to enhance the appearance of beards, adding to its versatility and appeal. —Stixx Matthews, Essence, 28 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English berd, from Old English beard; akin to Old High German bart beard, Latin barba

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing beard

• old-man's beard
• spade beard

Kids Definition

beard

1 of 2 noun

ˈbi(ə)rd 

1

: the hair that grows on a man's face often not including the mustache

2

: a hairy or bristly growth or bunch (as on the chin of a goat)

bearded

-əd 

adjective

beardless

-ləs 

adjective

beard

2 of 2 verb

: to face or challenge boldly

bearded his enemy

Medical Definition

beard

noun

ˈbi(ə)rd 

: the hair that grows on a man's face often excluding the mustache

bearded

-əd 

adjective

Biographical Definition

Beard 1 of 2

biographical name (1)

ˈbird 

Charles Austin 1874–1948 and his wife Mary 1876–1958 née Ritter American historians

Beard

2 of 2

biographical name (2)

Daniel Carter 1850–1941 Uncle Dan American painter, illustrator, and organizer of Boy Scouts in U.S.