Definition of "bard" []

• One of an ancient Celtic order of minstrel poets who composed and recited verses celebrating the legendary exploits of chieftains and heroes. (noun)
• A poet, especially a lyric poet. (noun)
• A piece of armor used to protect or ornament a horse. (noun)
• To equip (a horse) with bards. (verb-transitive)
• To cover (meat) in thin pieces of bacon or fat to preserve moisture during cooking. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The reason which induced me to do so was the knowledge of an appalling tragedy transacted there in the old time, in which there is every reason to suppose a certain Welsh bard, called Lewis"
• "In consequence, perhaps, of Lucan's having spoken of _carmina bardi_, the word bard began to be used, early in the 17th century, to designate any kind of a serious poet, whether lyric or epic, and is so employed by"
• "The night of the bard was the night that the blackmail began."