Word.ws English Dictionary

baldric

Syllables: bald·ric/ˈbɔːldɹɪk//ˈbɔldɹɪk/

baldric noun: a broad belt, originally of leather and often richly ornamented, worn diagonally from shoulder to hip (across the breast and under the opposite arm), which was formerly used to hold a sword, a bugle, etc., and is now chiefly worn for ceremonial purposes; also (loosely), any belt.

Noun

baldric (plural baldrics)

  1. A broad belt, originally of leather and often richly ornamented, worn diagonally from shoulder to hip (across the breast and under the opposite arm), which was formerly used to hold a sword, a bugle, etc., and is now chiefly worn for ceremonial purposes; also (loosely), any belt.
    • But now how many men are there proude of that that is not theyrs at al? Is there no man proude of keping another mannes gate? […] [W]hat a brag-kyng maketh a beareward wͭ [with] his ſyluer buttened bawdrike, for pride of another mannes bere?1534 (date written), Thomas More, “A Treatice vpon the Passion of Chryste (Vnfinished) […]. The Fyrst Poynt, the Fall of Aungelles.”, in Marye Basset [i.e., Mary Basset], transl., edited by Wyllyam...
    • Athvvart his breſt a bauldrick braue he vvare, / That ſhind, like tvvinkling ſtars, vvith ſtones moſt pretious rare.1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book I, Canto VII”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC, stanza 29, page 97
  2. (broadly, obsolete) A (usually leather) strap from which the clapper of a bell is suspended.
    • [P]aid to the Collermaker of Leawsam for a bawdricke for the great bell … … … iijs.1585 (date written), J[ohn] C[harles] L[ett] Stahlschmidt, “Part III. Inscriptions.”, in The Church Bells of Kent: Their Inscriptions, Founders, Uses and Traditions, London: Elliot Stock, […]...
    • The Bawdricke of a bell-clapper. Ropalicorigia.1615, Thomas Thomas, “The Bawdricke of a bell-clapper”, in Thomæ Thomasii Dictionarium […], 10th edition, London: […] Iohannis Legati, celeberrimæ Academiæ Cantabrigiensis typographi, →OCLC, column 1
  3. (broadly, obsolete) A necklace.
    • Baldrike for a ladyes necke carcan s[ubstantive] ma[le]1530 July 28 (Gregorian calendar), Iohan Palsgraue [i.e., John Palsgrave], “The Table of Substantyues”, in Lesclarcissement de la langue francoyse⸝ […], [London]: […] [Richard Pynson] fynnysshed by...
  4. (figuratively, obsolete) The zodiac (“belt-like region of the celestial sphere, approximately eight degrees north and south of the ecliptic, which includes the apparent path of the sun, moon, and visible planets”).
    • [S]he [Astraea] hath novv an euerlaſting place, / Mongſt thoſe tvvelue ſignes, vvhich nightly vve doe ſee / The heauens bright-ſhining baudricke to enchace; […]1596, Edmund Spenser, “Book V, Canto I”, in The Faerie Queene. […], part II (books IV–VI), London: […] [Richard Field] for William Ponsonby, →OCLC, stanza 11, page 190
    • Right fondly haue the Poets pleaſ'd to ſay, / From earth the faire Aſtræa’s fled avvay, / And in the ſhining Baudrike takes her ſeat, / To make the number of the ſignes compleat.1621, Fra[ncis] Quarles, “Sect[ion] 13. Meditatio decimatertia.”, in Hadassa: Or The History of Queene Ester: With Meditations thereupon, Diuine and Morall, London: […] Richard Moore, […], →OCLC...

baldric meaning in Punjabi, Arabic and Persian

baldric in Punjabi

broad belt worn diagonally from shoulder to hip formerly used to hold a sword, etc.
ਗਾਤਰਾ gātrā, گاترا gātrā

baldric in Arabic

broad belt worn diagonally from shoulder to hip formerly used to hold a sword, etc.
حَمَّالَة ḥammāla

baldric in Persian

broad belt worn diagonally from shoulder to hip formerly used to hold a sword, etc.
حمایل hamâyel

Examples of baldric in a sentence

  • A radiant Baldric, o'er his Shoulder ty'd, / Suſtains the Svvord that glitters at his ſide.1715, Homer, “Book III”, in Alexander Pope, transl., The Iliad of Homer, volume I, London: […] W[illiam] Bowyer, for Bernard Lintott […]...
  • And from his blazon'd baldric slung, / A mighty silver bugle hung, / And, as he rode, his armour rung, / Beside remote Shalott.1832 December (indicated as 1833), Alfred Tennyson, “The Lady of Shalott”, in Poems, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, part the third, page...
  • Fore George, I would not ask thee to buckle my baldrick when the war-steeds were snorting, but I would trust Isabel with the links of my hauberk.1843, [Edward Bulwer-Lytton], “Earl Warwick, the King-maker”, in The Last of the Barons, volume I, London: Saunders and Otley, […], →OCLC...
  • The man facing Locklear had his head covered with a red bandanna, and over his shoulder was a baldric from which a cutlass had hung.1998 November, Raymond E[lias] Feist, “Encounter”, in Krondor: The Betrayal […] (The Riftwar Legacy; I), New York, N.Y.: HarperTorch...

Forms of baldric

pluralbaldrics
alternative formbaldrick
alternative formbaudric
alternative formbaudrick
alternative formbaudricke
alternative formbauldric
alternative formbauldrick
alternative formbawdric
alternative formbawdrick

Origin of baldric

From Middle English baudrik, bauderik, baudry (“belt worn over the shoulder or around the waist for carrying a sword, etc., baldric; (by extension) type of leather strap”), from Old French baldré, baldrei, baudré (“crossbelt, sword-belt”) (modern French baudrier); further etymology uncertain, possibly from Frankish *balterād, from earlier *baltiraidī (“belt gear, belt equipment”) (compare Old Occitan baldrei, baudrat), from Frankish *balti (“belt”), from Latin balteus (possibly borrowed from Etruscan 𐌁𐌀𐌋𐌕𐌄𐌀 (baltea, “belt”)) + Frankish *(ga)raidī (“equipment”). However, the Oxford English Dictionary states that a derivation from balteus does not satisfactorily account for the bald- spelling in the various languages. Middle High German balderich, belderich, derived from the Old French word, may have influenced the Middle English form. Sense 2.3 (“zodiac”) is from its resemblance to a belt ornamented with jewels (sense 1).

Words formed from baldric

Questions about baldric

What does baldric mean?
Baldric means a broad belt, originally of leather and often richly ornamented, worn diagonally from shoulder to hip (across the breast and under the opposite arm), which was formerly used to hold a sword, a bugle, etc., and is now chiefly worn for ceremonial purposes; also (loosely), any belt.
What is baldric in Punjabi?
Baldric in Punjabi is ਗਾਤਰਾ (gātrā), گاترا (gātrā). See Baldric meaning in Punjabi.
How do you use baldric in a sentence?
A radiant Baldric, o'er his Shoulder ty'd, / Suſtains the Svvord that glitters at his ſide.
What part of speech is baldric?
Baldric is a noun.
How do you pronounce baldric?
Baldric is pronounced /ˈbɔːldɹɪk/ (UK).
What is the plural of baldric?
The plural of baldric is baldrics.

Words near baldric in the dictionary

  1. Baldragon
  2. Baldree
  3. baldresca
  4. baldrib
  5. baldribs
  6. baldric
  7. baldrick
  8. baldricked
  9. baldricks
  10. baldrics
  11. baldricwise

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: baldric (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-baldric.wav, LL-Q1860 (eng)-Naomi Persephone Amethyst (NaomiAmethyst)-baldric.wav.

Cite this entry: “baldric.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/baldric. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.