beldame
/ˈbɛldəm/ noun
Forms beldames beldam
- noun (obsolete) A grandmother.
- noun (now archaic) An old woman, particularly an ugly one.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Etymology
Inherited from late (1400–1450) Middle English beldame, beldam, from Middle English bel (“attractive, fine, good”) (from Old French bel (“beautiful”), from Latin bellus) + dame, dam (“a mother, lady”), itself ultimately from Latin domina (“a mistress, lady”).
Webster’s 1913
- noun Grandmother; --corresponding to belsire.
- noun An old woman in general; especially, an ugly old woman; a hag. Around the beldam all erect they hang. Akenside.
Etymology [Pref. bel-, denoting relationship + dame mother: cf. F. belledame fair lady, It. belladonna. See Belle, and Dame.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “beldame”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details