Refers to facial hair on the cheeks, specifically sideburns or whiskers. Not a general term for beard.
He is growing sideburns.
The actor is known for his long sideburns.
Shinano whiskered bat; Hosono's myotis
Standard kanji spelling for sideburns/whiskers.
Mixed kanji-kana spelling, common in everyday writing.
Rare variant using 髯 instead of 髭.
Formed from 頬（ほお） “cheek” and 髭（ひげ） “facial hair,” with sequential voicing of ひげ to びげ.