bawdy

adjective

ˈbȯ-dē How to pronounce bawdy (audio)
Definition of bawdynext
1
as in obscene
depicting or referring to sexual matters in a way that is unacceptable in polite society a bawdy comment about someone you work with could get you fired

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in suggestive
hinting at or intended to call to mind matters regarded as indecent a bawdy limerick that mischievous storytellers love to recite

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bawdy What started as an idea for a variety show about her life in late 2017 became a bawdy, self-deprecating song-and-dance extravaganza following her arrest that Christmas Eve. — Luisa Opalesky, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026 The potentially odorous oxfords and bawdy boots come on the heels of another viral foot sensation. — Rachel Tashjian, CNN Money, 26 June 2026 Since then, Sarah Ruden’s excellent (and much bawdier) new translation has come out. — Literary Hub, 19 May 2026 True to the genre’s name, the blues could be bawdy, humorously describing the pleasures of the flesh, or sorrowful, conveying heart-wrenching despair. — René Ostberg, Encyclopedia Britannica, 20 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for bawdy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bawdy
  1. obscene
  2. suggestive
  3. vulgar
  4. spicy
  5. pornographic
  6. ribald
  7. nasty
  8. foul
Adjective
  • In Russia, soldiers die at the front by the hundreds of thousands while politically compliant billionaires accumulate obscene fortunes.
    — Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Time, 22 Oct. 2026
  • At the next timeout, an announcement was made asking fans to refrain from obscene chants.
    — Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of obscene
Adjective
  • The effect dissipates somewhat whenever Cahyono resorts to less suggestive, more blatantly surreal imagery.
    — Kambole Campbell, Variety, 10 Oct. 2026
  • Though revealing, his version of naked dressing was tantalizingly suggestive rather than explicitly bare.
    — Laird Borrelli-Persson, Vogue, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of suggestive
Adjective
  • In her smartly vulgar The Seasons (1957), which extends nearly 17 feet, Krasner returns to the subject of rebirth one year after Pollock’s death, depicting abundant forms resembling genitalia.
    — John Yau, ARTnews.com, 18 Oct. 2026
  • While Musgraves' comments received both praise and backlash, one country music legend took exception to the vulgar remarks.
    — Austin Perry OutKick, FOXNews.com, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of vulgar
Adjective
  • The restaurant also makes its own salsas, including roja, verde and a spicier green variety.
    — Evan Moore, Charlotte Observer, 24 Oct. 2026
  • The property collaborated with Nobu and the food is clean and delicious—unsurprisingly, lots of raw fish and produce like spicy microgreens and August-sweet tomatoes grown at Sensei’s hydroponic farm down the road.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of spicy
Adjective
  • On the day of the $50 million demand, a WeChat chat on one of her phones shows pornographic images arriving and being sent back with Victim-1’s face grafted on, the complaint says.
    — Catherina Gioino, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The filing follows a separate legal battle launched by Meloni in 2024 against a man accused of creating and posting deepfake pornographic images using her likeness.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of pornographic
Adjective
  • Flagrantly practicing an especially ribald strain of cringe comedy that brushes several third rails, often simultaneously, the show could have been a disastrous gambit.
    — Paula Mejía, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Despite the ribald phrasing, this kind of question is not entirely uncommon at Memphis’s World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest.
    — Sam Stone, Bon Appetit Magazine, 1 July 2026
Definition of ribald
Adjective
  • The polls still show a close-range contest, but in the increasingly nasty ad war, the spending suggests a far more lopsided fight.
    — Philip Elliott, Time, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Officers then cuffed the youngster as he was loaded into an ambulance and hospitalized for a fractured femur and a nasty bruise on his head, according to the lawsuit, which was filed by the teen’s dad, Mahmoud Saleh, in Brooklyn Federal Court.
    — John Annese, New York Daily News, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of nasty
Adjective
  • The bodies of Machado and her daughters were discovered days later after a neighbor noticed a foul odor coming from the home.
    — CBS Miami Team, CBS News, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Caminero pulled Smith’s first-pitch splitter off the left-field foul pole for a two-run homer that gave the Rays a 5-1 lead.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of foul

Phrases Containing bawdy

Browse Nearby Words

bawds
bawdy
bawdy house
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Cite this Entry

“Bawdy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bawdy. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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