bend sinister

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.

That in heraldry, a bend sinister indicates bastardy.

From New York Times • Dec. 19, 2019

Remember that most all slang is of vulgar origin and bears upon its face the bend sinister of vulgarity.

From How to Speak and Write Correctly by Devlin, Joseph

It is a diminutive of the bend sinister, of which it is one-fourth in width, couped or cut short at the ends, so as not to touch the corners of the shield.

From The New Gresham Encyclopedia. Vol. 1 Part 3 Atrebates to Bedlis by Various

He even showed her his complicated coat-of-arms, which included a bend sinister, for he had royal blood in his veins; and this slanting rod interested Isabel as deeply as the moat under the window.

From Ancestors A Novel by Atherton, Gertrude Franklin Horn

There is a strange bend sinister in human nature, against sincerity, that will indulge itself even at the cost of life itself.

From The Bramleighs of Bishop's Folly by Lever, Charles James