beard
noun
a thick growth of hair on the face, especially on an adult man, often including a mustache.
beard
1 American
[beerd]
/ bɪərd /
noun
-
beards
plural
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a thick growth of hair on the face, especially on an adult man, often including a mustache.
He's been growing out his beard for a couple of months, and it's filling in nicely.
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Zoology. a tuft, growth, or part resembling or suggesting the thick growth of hair on the human face, such as the tuft of long hairs on the lower jaw of a goat or the cluster of hairlike feathers at the base of the bill in certain birds.
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Botany. a tuft or growth of awns or the like, as on wheat or barley.
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a barb or catch on an arrow, fishhook, knitting needle, crochet needle, etc.
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Also called bevel neck. Printing.
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the sloping part of a type that connects the face with the shoulder of the body.
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British. the space on a type between the bottom of the face of an x-high character and the edge of the body, comprising both beard and shoulder.
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the cross stroke on the stem of a capital G.
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Slang. a romantic partner chosen to conceal a person's sexual orientation, especially that of a gay or lesbian person.
verb (used with object)
-
beards,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bearded,
past participle, past
-
bearding
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
beards,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bearded,
past participle, past
-
bearding
present participle
Beard
2
American
[beerd]
/ bɪərd /
noun
-
Charles Austin, 1874–1948, and his wife Mary, 1876–1958, U.S. historians.
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Daniel Carter, 1850–1941, U.S. artist and naturalist: organized the Boy Scouts of America in 1910.
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James Andrew, 1903–85, U.S. cooking teacher and food writer.
beard
British
/ bɪəd /
noun
-
the hair growing on the lower parts of a man's face
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any similar growth in animals
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a tuft of long hairs in plants such as barley and wheat; awn
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the gills of an oyster
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a barb, as on an arrow or fish-hook
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slang a woman who accompanies a homosexual man to give the impression that he is heterosexual
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printing the part of a piece of type that connects the face with the shoulder
verb
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to oppose boldly or impertinently
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to pull or grasp the beard of
beard
Scientific
/ bîrd /
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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beardsimple
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beardssimple
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have beardedperfect
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has beardedperfect
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am beardingprogressive
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are beardingprogressive
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is beardingprogressive
-
have been beardingperfect progressive
-
has been beardingperfect progressive
Past
-
beardedsimple
-
had beardedperfect
-
was beardingprogressive
-
were beardingprogressive
-
had been beardingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of beard
First recorded before 900; Middle English berd, Old English beard; cognate with Dutch baard, German Bart, Late Latin Langobardi “Long-beards (name of the Lombards),” Crimean Gothic bars; akin to Latin barba, Lithuanian barzdà, Old Church Slavonic brada, Russian borodá
Explanation
A beard is the facial hair on a person's chin and cheeks. Santa Claus is famous in part for his long, white beard. You're most likely to see a beard on an adult man, although some women grow enough facial hair to sport a beard too. Some animals, like goats, have beards as well. Someone whose presence helps another person disguise his identity — maybe because he's a spy — is often informally called a beard as well.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Commander of the Revolutionary Guards in the 1980s and 1990s, Rezaei has never been far from prominence, with his stern face and black beard a familiar presence for Iranians on TV.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
Thirteen years later, Bauers has a beard, tattoos and is in his seventh major league season as the first baseman for the Milwaukee Brewers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
Yet in the modern era, no American president has gone about in mustache or beard.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
He trimmed and groomed his beard, and made sure his short hair was neatly cut.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
“We could have touched his beard, if we’d wanted to, except he’s so tall neither of us could reach it!”
From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar
Belinda Chang, a James Beard Award-winning sommelier in Chicago, said she has been approached by business school students and financial executives to lead workshops on how to navigate wine lists in corporate settings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
Born in Frankston, Texas in 1949, Beard joined ZZ Top in 1969 and followed the three-man band's progression from heavy blues to its experimental synthesizer sound of the 1980s.
From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026
ZZ top lead vocalist Billy Gibbons, bassist Dusty Hill and drummer Frank Beard in 2009.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
Beard, whose beats carried hits like "La Grange" and "Sharp Dressed Man," had stepped back from touring last year after suffering unspecified health issues.
From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026
“Come on, we’re going to Beard Papa’s. We’ll bring stuff back. Ben, you coming?”
From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
I wasn’t surprised to learn the two men were close friends; they even look alike, with their long white beards and sparkling eyes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
He detested beards, thought them all fakes—his bearded Georgian father had died in 1937.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
George Balanchine, the great modernist choreographer, forbade his male dancers to wear long hair or beards.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
In a theatrical touch, around two dozen soldiers wearing historic-style suits of armour, pointed helmets and what appeared to be fake beards and moustaches stood outside the palace itself.
From Barron's ● Jul. 7, 2026
“And I skimmed, perhaps, over the details of Lateef’s ring. But by my soul, and by your beards, I’m sorry. Let him who has not swindled a little throw the first stone.”
From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri
Hidden in the basement of a supermarket, the thick smell of sweat hangs heavy in the air as she pushes weights alongside bearded muscle-men.
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
Other entrants include a trans woman named Ashley Webb and a gloriously bearded Marine vet.
From Slate ● Jul. 16, 2026
The site is home to bird species including bearded tit, avocet, redshank and lapwing.
From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026
The trendy, bearded sports photographer I met for a late-night dinner at Fred 62 in Los Feliz.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2026
A bearded man sat on a throne, holding a staff in one hand and a hyacinth in the other.
From "Darius the Great Is Not Okay" by Adib Khorram
Some say this bearding trend began with the 1980s television series “Miami Vice,” wherein the actor Don Johnson sported a 5-o’clock shadow that was much commented on.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
There’s talk of bearding dragons in their den and of forthcoming battles, plus a rather lovely foray into a deep cave system.
From The Guardian ● May 11, 2016
Indeed, a pop star and a bearding champion had walked into a bar.
From New York Times ● Dec. 5, 2011
John Buckler, 31, from Lansing, Mich., likened the bearding community to a social club.
From New York Times ● Dec. 5, 2011
The grey moss grew thickly here, covering the fallen stones in great mounds and bearding all the towers.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
