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bend sinister

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noun Heraldry.
  1. a diagonal band extending from the sinister chief of an escutcheon to the dexter base: a supposed mark of bastardy.

Origin of bend sinister

First recorded in 1615–25
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for bend sinister

Historical Examples

  • His proud crest and armorial bearings support him: no bend-sinister slurs his poetical escutcheon!

    Table-Talk

    William Hazlitt

  • Baton-sinister, a bend-sinister like a marshal's baton, an indication of illegitimacy.

    The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

    Edited by Rev. James Wood

British Dictionary definitions for bend sinister

bend sinister

noun
  1. heraldry a diagonal line bisecting a shield from the top right to the bottom left, typically indicating a bastard line
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012