[bɪəd], (Noun)

Definitions:
- a growth of hair on the chin and lower cheeks of a man's face
(e.g: he had a black beard)

- a person who carries out a transaction, typically a bet, for someone else in order to conceal the other's identity
(e.g: the beard permitted the manipulator to protect the odds)

- a woman who accompanies a gay man as an escort to a social occasion, in order to help conceal his homosexuality
(e.g: the closeted male and his female ‘beard’)


Phrases:
- beard the lion in his den

Origin:
Old English, of West Germanic origin; related to Dutch baard and German Bart

[bɪəd], (Verb)

Definitions:
- boldly confront or challenge (someone formidable)
(e.g: he was afraid to beard the sultan himself)


Phrases:
- beard the lion in his den

Origin:
Old English, of West Germanic origin; related to Dutch baard and German Bart