Merriam-Webster's Collegiate® Dictionary, 11th Edition
BALD
I. adjective
Etymology: Middle English balled; probably akin to Danish dialect bældet bald, Latin fulica coot, Greek phalios having a white spot, Old English bǣl fire, pyre
Date: 14th century
1. lacking a natural or usual covering (as of hair, vegetation, or nap), having little or no tread , marked with white, lacking adornment or amplification , undisguised , palpable , see: bare baldish adjective baldly adverb baldness noun
II. verb
Date: 1602
transitive verb to make bald, intransitive verb to become bald