Meaning

noun the hair growing on the lower part of a man's face

noun a tuft or growth of hairs or bristles on certain plants such as iris or grasses

noun a person who diverts suspicion from someone (especially a woman who accompanies a male homosexual in order to conceal his homosexuality)

originPIE word *bʰardʰéh₂ From Middle English berd, bard, bærd, from Old English beard, from Proto-West Germanic *bard, from Proto-Germanic *bardaz, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰardʰeh₂, *bʰh₂erdʰeh₂. Cognates Cognate with Scots beird (“beard”), Yola bearde (“beard”), North Frisian biard (“beard”), Saterland Frisian Boart (“beard”), West Frisian burd (“beard”), Bavarian Bårt (“beard”), Dutch baard…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0