bawd
Americannoun
-
a woman who maintains a brothel; madam.
-
a prostitute.
-
a procuress.
noun
-
a person who runs a brothel, esp a woman
-
a prostitute
Etymology
Origin of bawd
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English bawde, noun use of Middle French baude, feminine of baud “jolly, dissolute,” from West Germanic; compare Old English bald bold
Vocabulary lists containing bawd
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.
“The impudence of a bawd is modesty compared with that of a convert,” said George Savile, the first marquess of Halifax.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 8, 2026
Words such as scold, shrew, termagent, witch, harlot, bawd, and tramp were all at one point in their histories terms for men; furthermore, the terms were usually neutral and sometimes even adulatory.
From Salon • May 11, 2013
Best of all is the wonderful, pivotal scene in which Tilly Tremayne's well-judged, shrewd widow takes on Harriet Walter's glittering bawd at chess.
From The Guardian • May 1, 2010
Dayton, Ohio; Miami, Fla. Kiss Me Kate, Cole Porter's musical melding of bard and bawd, with Marguerite Piazza as the tamed shrew.
From Time Magazine Archive
He hath salves for every sore, to hide them, not to heal them; complexion for every face; sin hath not any more artificial broker or more impudent bawd.
From Character Writings of the 17th Century by Various
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.
