Be-

Pronunciation

• IPA: /bɪ/, /bi/

Origin

From Middle English be-, bi-, from Old English be- ("be-"), from Proto-Germanic *bi- ("be-"), from Proto-Germanic *bi ("near, by"). See by. Cognate with Dutch be- ("be-"), German be- ("be-"), Swedish be- ("be-"). More at by.

Full definition of be-

Prefix

1. (rare or no longer productive) By, near, next to, around, close to.beleaguer, bestand, beset, besit
2. (rare or no longer productive) Around; about.begather, belay, belook, bestir, belive, besmell, bewrap
3. (rare or no longer productive) About, regarding, concerning, over.bewrite, betalk, betell, bemoan, bemourn, bewail, beknow, besing, bespeak
4. (rare or no longer productive) On, upon, at, to, in contact with something.beclothe, becall, besee, behold, befall, bedo, beshine, besmile, betone
5. (rare or no longer productive) Off, away, over, acrossbecut, bedeal, betake, bego, behead, belimb, beland, benim, bereave, besleeve, betrunk
6. (rare or no longer productive) As an intensifier; i.e. thoroughly, excessively; completely; utterly.bebreak, begladden, belabour, behate, bedazzle
7. (rare or no longer productive) All around; about; abundantly; all over.belave, belick, bescatter, bekiss
8. (rare or no longer productive) Forming verbs derived from nouns or adjectives, usually with the sense of "to make, become, or cause to be".becalm, bedark, befree, befriend, bedim, beken, benight, benothing, bewet, besmooth
9. (archaic or informal) Used to intensify adjectives meaning "adorned with something" often those with the suffix -ed.besequined, befeathered, beclawed, bewebbed, betasseled, beloved

Derived terms