bastard

MMA is the bastard child of illegal street fights and martial arts, which has always made for a strange blend of freak-show sleaze and a culture of respect.

From Slate ● Jun. 14, 2026

It had bastard status among classical culturati from the get-go, which kept it out of the concert halls where it arguably belonged as a rightful heir to other long-form orchestral music.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 15, 2026

Leonardo da Vinci—whose very name indicates he’s from a place, rather than of a person—was one such bastard.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 23, 2025

He reacts with the defiance of a man whose football-playing friend recently described him as a "hard bastard".

From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2025

It was because she was listening so closely that she knew the exact moment when Kaz Brekker, Dirtyhands, the bastard of the Barrel and the deadliest boy in Ketterdam, fainted.

From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo

Filmmakers, now those poor bastards need rich patrons.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 9, 2026

Beforehand, Salfordian frontman Shaun Ryder told BBC News it was "brilliant that those lazy bastards from London have decided to get off their bums and come up north for an hour or two".

From BBC ● Mar. 24, 2026

The Renaissance, Jacob Burckhardt once wrote, was a golden age for bastards.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 23, 2025

"And we will rebuild. No matter what these Russian terrorists and bastards may do, we will rebuild and restore everything," he said.

From Reuters ● Feb. 23, 2023

Stevron and Jared are too old for the lists now, but Danwell and Hosteen rode, Perwyn as well, and a couple of my bastards tried the melee.

From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin