be-
prefix/bɪ/
/bɪ/
- (in verbs) to make or treat somebody/something as
- Don't belittle his achievements (= say they are not important).
- An older girl befriended me.
- (in adjectives ending in -ed) wearing or covered with
- heavily bejewelled fingers
- bespattered with mud
- (in verbs and adjectives ending in -ed) to cause something to be
- The ship was becalmed (= there was no wind so it could not move).
- The rebels besieged the fort.
- used to turn intransitive verbs (= without an object) into transitive verbs (= with an object)
- She is always bemoaning her lot.
Word OriginOld English, weak form of bī ‘by’.
Check pronunciation:
be-