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Added 9 October 2026

bald

/bɔːld/ adjective

In Latin: calvus Wiktionary

adjective Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about bald at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Having little or no hair, fur, or feathers.
My uncle is bald.
Having little or no hair on the head, or having a large area of bare scalp on top of the head.
a bald man with a moustache
Of animals, having areas (of fur or plumage) that are colored white, especially on the head.

noun

A mountain summit or crest, or any relatively flat area at high elevation, that lacks forest growth despite a warm climate conducive to such, as is found in many places in the Southern Appalachian Mountains.
A bald person.

verb

To become bald.
To make bald.

Origin

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 relates it to Old English bǣl (“fire, flame; funeral pyre”), from Proto-Germanic *bēlą. Compare Albanian balë (“white spot on the forehead”) and ballë (“forehead”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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