misbegotten

/ˌˈmɪsbəˌgɑtn/

If you describe something as misbegotten, you think it had an improper basis or was poorly conceived — like the misbegotten dress code at your school, which requires students to wear long sleeves even in hot, humid weather.

The adjective misbegotten, which commonly means "badly planned," used to have another use: it was a derogatory way to describe someone born to unmarried parents. It's extremely old fashioned to use the word that way, but you may come across it in an older book — describing a misbegotten heroine, for example. Misbegotten can also be used simply to mean "contemptible," as in "That misbegotten villain stole my grandmother's purse!"

Definitions of misbegotten

1. adjective

   poorly conceived or thought out
   synonyms: ill-conceived, misguided

   foolish

   devoid of good sense or judgment
2. adjective

   deserving of contempt or scorn
   synonyms: contemptible

   abject, low, low-down, miserable, scummy, scurvy

   of the most contemptible kind

   bastardly, mean

   of no value or worth

   pathetic, pitiable, pitiful

   inspiring mixed contempt and pity

   ignoble

   completely lacking nobility in character or quality or purpose

   unworthy

   lacking in value or merit
3. adjective

   born out of wedlock
   synonyms: bastardly, misbegot, spurious

   illegitimate

   of marriages and offspring; not recognized as lawful