dastardly

C2+ Topic:Describing People

US /ˈdæstɚdli/ UK /ˈdæstədli/ See IPA manual

adj adv

Meanings

1

adj
wicked and cruel in a cowardly, contemptible way

The villain's dastardly plot was foiled at the last moment.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · wicked and cruel in a... cowardly treacherous craven despicable contemptible base villainous sneaking

Opposites

heroic brave valiant gallant noble

Word family

Derived forms dastardliness

Related forms dastard

Etymology

From dastard ('a coward'), a Middle English formation perhaps from dased ('dazed, dull') plus the pejorative suffix -ard. The adjectival -ly sense 'wickedly cowardly' is recorded from the 16th century.

dastard Middle English

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing People Word Formation & Derivatives

# dastardly

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj, adv
**IPA (US):** ˈdæstɚdli
**IPA (UK):** ˈdæstədli

## Meanings
1. wicked and cruel in a cowardly, contemptible way

## Examples
- The villain's dastardly plot was foiled at the last moment.

## Synonyms
- cowardly
- treacherous
- craven
- despicable
- contemptible
- base
- villainous
- sneaking

## Antonyms
- heroic
- brave
- valiant
- gallant
- noble

## Derived Forms
- dastardliness

## Related Forms
- dastard

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: dastard

## Etymology
From dastard ('a coward'), a Middle English formation perhaps from dased ('dazed, dull') plus the pejorative suffix -ard. The adjectival -ly sense 'wickedly cowardly' is recorded from the 16th century.

## AI Etymology
Dastardly comes from dastard ('a coward'), a Middle English formation perhaps from dased ('dazed, dull') plus the pejorative suffix -ard. The adjectival -ly sense 'wickedly cowardly' is recorded from the 16th century. The etymological trail includes Middle English dastard. As an adjective, dastardly describes what is wicked and cruel in a cowardly, contemptible way. The same family is visible in derived forms such as dastardliness and related forms such as dastard. The wording should be read with that uncertainty intact: the proposed connection is plausible rather than absolute.

## Topics
- Describing People
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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dastardly

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