bastardly

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Thân thiện

A man is stuck in a bastardly traffic jam on his way to work.

Definition

Adjective:
- Of low quality, worthless, or contemptible: Describes something or someone considered to be of very poor quality, mean, or despicable.
- Born out of wedlock; illegitimate: Describes a person whose parents were not married to each other at the time of their birth. This meaning is now archaic and offensive.

Usage Examples

Adjective (meaning: contemptible):
- His bastardly behavior towards his employees led to a high turnover rate.
- We were delayed by some bastardly mechanical issue with the plane.
Adjective (meaning: illegitimate - archaic):
- The king's bastardly son could not inherit the throne under the old laws. (Note: This usage is outdated and offensive.)

Advanced Usage

As an intensifier for negative qualities: The word is used to strongly emphasize the despicable or worthless nature of something.
- It was a bastardly trick to play on someone who trusted you.

Variants and Related Words

Bastard (n, adj): The noun form, historically meaning an illegitimate child, is now a highly offensive slur. As an adjective, it can mean "illegitimate" (archaic/offensive) or, informally, "difficult or unpleasant" (e.g., ).
Bastardization (n): The act of corrupting or debasing something.
- The film was a complete bastardization of the original novel.

Synonyms

Despicable: Deserving hatred and contempt.
Contemptible: Worthy of scorn; despicable.
Worthless: Having no real value or use.
Illegitimate (for the archaic sense): Born to parents not lawfully married to each other.

Antonyms

Admirable: Deserving respect and approval.
Honorable: Bringing or worthy of honor.
Legitimate (for the archaic sense): Born of parents lawfully married to each other.

Notes on Usage

Register and Offensiveness: The word "bastardly" is considered vulgar and highly offensive, especially due to its etymological link to the slur "bastard." Its use is generally avoided in formal and polite contexts.
Archaic Sense: The meaning related to birth ("illegitimate") is obsolete. Using the word in this sense today would be considered deeply offensive and inappropriate.
Modern Use: In contemporary, informal use, it almost exclusively functions as a strong, vulgar adjective meaning "contemptible" or "extremely unpleasant."

A man is stuck in a bastardly traffic jam on his way to work.

Adjective

of no value or worth
- I was caught in the bastardly traffic
born out of wedlock
- the dominions of both rulers passed away to their spurious or doubtful offspring- E.A.Freeman

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