'uneven-bearded' is a modern compound formed from the adjective 'uneven' and the adjective 'bearded' (the past-participial adjective from 'beard').

'uneven' originates from Old English/French elements: the prefix 'un-' (negation) + 'even' (from Old English 'efen' meaning 'level, levelled'); 'bearded' derives from Old English 'beard' + suffix '-ed' to form an adjective meaning 'having a beard'. These elements combined in contemporary English to form the descriptive compound 'uneven-bearded'.

Initially the component words meant 'not level' ('uneven') and 'having a beard' ('bearded'); combined, the compound's meaning straightforwardly became 'having a beard that is not even', with little semantic shift since formation.