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beldam

[ bel-duhm, -dam ]
/ ˈbɛl dəm, -dæm /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR beldam

noun

an old woman, especially an ugly one; hag.
Obsolete. grandmother.

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Also bel·dame [bel-duhm, -deym]. /ˈbɛl dəm, -ˌdeɪm/.

Origin of beldam

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, equivalent to bel- “grand-” (from Middle French bel, belle “fine, good-looking”) + dam “mother”; see beau, belle, dam2

Words nearby beldam

belaying cleat, belaying pin, bel canto, belch, beld, beldam, beleaguer, belection, Belém, belemnite, belemnoid
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to beldam

crone, hag

Example sentences from the Web for beldam

British Dictionary definitions for beldam

beldam

beldame

/ (ˈbɛldəm) /

noun

archaic an old woman, esp an ugly or malicious one; hag
an obsolete word for grandmother

Word Origin for beldam

C15: from bel- grand (as in grandmother), from Old French bel beautiful, from Latin bellus + dam mother, variant of dame
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