US /bɑːld/ UK /bɔːld/
adj verb Freq #5229

Meanings

  1. 1
    adj

    Having little or no hair on the head.

    My uncle went bald in his thirties.

  2. 2
    adj

    Without the usual covering, such as grass, leaves, or surface.

    There was a bald spot on the lawn where nothing would grow.

  3. 3
    adj

    Plain and direct, with nothing added.

    He gave a bald statement of the facts without any explanation.

Thesaurus

Synonyms
1 adj · having little or no hair on... bald-headedhairless
2 adj · without the usual covering,... denuded
Word family
Forms balderbaldestbalditudebaldness
Derived forms bald-facedbald-headedbald-shamebald-shamingbaldenbaldfacedbaldheadbaldheadedbaldiebaldilocksbaldingbaldingness
Related forms callownott

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *bʰel- Proto-Germanic *balluz Old English *beall Middle English bal? Proto-Indo-European *bʰel- Proto-Indo-European *bʰḗlH-o-m Proto-Germanic *bēlą Proto-West Germanic *bāl Old English bæl? Middle English balled English bald From Middle English balled, ballid, bald (“bald”), of uncertain origin. Probably formed from Middle English bal, balle (“ball, round object, knoll, head”). Compare Old Danish bældet (“bald”). An alternate etymology has Old English bǣl (“fire, flame; funeral pyre”), from Proto-Germanic *bēlą. Compare Albanian balë (“white spot on the foreh…

View etymology graph ->

Topics

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