What does bastardize mean?
Bastardize is a verb meaning to degrade something — to diminish its quality, value, or authenticity, usually through alteration or dilution of what was originally pure or well-made. It carries strongly negative connotations and appears most often in criticism: purists say a remake has been bastardized, linguists lament a dialect bastardized by borrowed slang, food writers complain about dishes bastardized for export. The word derives from "bastard," which entered English from Old French and ultimately traces back to Latin bastum, and originally carried a second, now-archaic legal sense: to formally declare a child illegitimate, with all the loss of status that implied in earlier centuries. That heritage gives the modern figurative use its sting — to bastardize something implies not just changing it but robbing it of legitimacy. Writers should reserve it for cases of genuine degradation rather than mere modification.
verbTo bastardize something is to reduce its quality or value, especially by corrupting an original or authentic form; it can also mean to declare a child to be illegitimate (a legal sense now largely historical).
- To reduce something in quality, value, or purity by altering or debasing it, especially an original work, tradition, or standard.
- (Historical/law) To declare a child illegitimate; to treat as a bastard.
"Critics accused the studio of bastardizing the classic novel with a plot rewritten for mass appeal."
"Purists complained that adding electric guitars to the folk arrangement had bastardized the traditional song."
"Under the old statutes, courts could bastardize a child born outside lawful marriage, stripping away rights of inheritance."
The same word that once stripped children of inheritance rights in medieval law courts now gets hurled at film studios and fast-food chains for ruining beloved classics.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of bastardize
Bastardize comes from "bastard" plus the verb-forming suffix -ize. "Bastard" entered Middle English from Old French bastard, likely derived from Late Latin bastum, meaning a packsaddle, on the notion of a child conceived on one — though this origin is somewhat uncertain. The verb appeared in English around the late sixteenth century, first in the literal legal sense of declaring a child illegitimate, then extending figuratively to mean corrupting or debasing anything regarded as genuine or original.
Related word forms
How bastardize is actually used
Almost always pejorative and typically used in criticism — of adaptations, translations, recipes, or institutions. The legal sense relating to illegitimacy is archaic and appears mainly in historical texts. Both British (-ise) and American (-ize) spellings exist.
Easily confused with bastardize
A bastard is a noun referring historically to a child born to unmarried parents, while bastardize is the verb meaning to degrade something's quality or legitimacy.
Brutalize means to make someone cruel or savage, whereas bastardize means to lower the quality or purity of a thing.