Meaning & use
bearded
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Meanings
adjectivebefore a noun
Having hair growing on the chin and cheeks, rather than a shaved face.
Grammar: Used before a noun (a bearded man) or after a linking verb (he was bearded).
Patterns
- a bearded man
- bearded and tall
A bearded man waved at us from the ferry.
The singer was bearded and wore a dark wool coat.
Her bearded uncle played the guitar at the party.
adjectivebefore a nounbiology
Having a tuft or fringe of hairs or bristles that looks like a beard, as in certain plants and animals.
Grammar: Often part of a species name: bearded dragon, bearded vulture.
Patterns
- a bearded something
The bearded dragon is a popular pet lizard.
Some grasses are bearded, with long bristles on the seed head.
A bearded vulture circled above the cliff.
Common combinations
- bearded man
- A tall bearded man opened the shop door.
- bearded dragon
- Our bearded dragon likes to sit under the warm lamp.
- bearded collie
- The bearded collie ran across the field with its fur flying.
- grey-bearded
- A grey-bearded fisherman repaired his nets on the dock.
- bearded iris
- Bearded irises bloom in the garden every late spring.
Synonyms and how they differ
- hirsute
- Hirsute is formal and means covered with a lot of hair anywhere on the body, not only a beard.
- whiskered
- Whiskered fits animals or old-fashioned portraits, and suggests whiskers or a moustache rather than a full beard.
- unshaven
- Unshaven describes a face with short stubble that has not been shaved, whereas bearded means the hair has grown into a beard.
Opposites
Word family
Practice
Which sentence uses bearded in a sense that relates to an animal?
Choose one answer.
Bearded dragon is a lizard with a spiny throat pouch. The other three sentences describe men with facial hair.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “bearded”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.