be-

See also: Appendix:Variations of "be"

Languages (22)

English

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Afrikaans • Danish • Dutch • German • Hungarian • Indonesian • Limburgish • Lithuanian • Luxembourgish • Middle Dutch • Middle English • Middle Low German • Navajo • Old English • Old Saxon • Swedish • Tooro • Uzbek • Volapük • Wutunhua • Zulu

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Page categories

English

Etymology

From Middle English be-, bi-, from Old English be- (“be-”), from Proto-Germanic *bi- (“be-”), from Proto-Germanic *bi (“near, by”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁epi (“at, near”). See by.

Cognate with Saterland Frisian bi- (“be-”), West Frisian be- (“be-”), Dutch be- (“be-”), German Low German be- (“be-”), German be- (“be-”), Danish be- (“be-”), Swedish be- (“be-”). More at by.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bɪ/, /bi/, /bə/

Prefix

be-

2. (rare or no longer productive) By, near, next to, around, close to.

   beleaguer, bestand, beset, besit

4. (rare or no longer productive) Around; about.

   begather, belay, belook, bestir, belive, besmell, bewrap

6. (rare or no longer productive) About, regarding, concerning, over.

   bewrite, betalk, betell, belie, bemoan, bemourn, bewail, beknow, besing, bespeak

8. (rare or no longer productive) On, upon, at, to, in contact with something.

   beclothe, becall, besee, behold, befall, bedo, beshine, besmile, betone

10. (rare or no longer productive) Off, away, over, across

    becut, bedeal, betake, bego, behead, belimb, benim, bereave, besleeve, betrunk

12. (rare or no longer productive) As an intensifier; i.e. thoroughly, excessively; completely; utterly.

    bebreak, begladden, belabour, behate, besmirch, bedazzle

14. (rare or no longer productive) All around; about; abundantly; all over.

    belave, belick, bescatter, bekiss

16. (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, bestrange

18. (archaic or informal) Used to intensify adjectives meaning "adorned with something", often those with the suffix -ed.

    besequined, befeathered, beclawed, bewebbed, betasseled, beloved

    • 2010 October 17, Hadley Freeman, “Tattoos: what makes one spiritual and another Katona-esque?”, in The Guardian‎^[1]:

      Similarly, one could argue that if these be-tattooed yogic folk were really so spiritual, they wouldn't feel the need to inform everyone else of this or remind themselves of it, via the medium of the tattoo.

Derived terms

English terms prefixed with be-

References

• the NED and OED

Anagrams

• EB, Eb

Afrikaans

Etymology

From Dutch be-, from Middle Dutch be-, from Old Dutch bi-, from Proto-Germanic *bi-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bə/

Prefix

be-

1. Used to indicate that a verb is acting on a direct object (making an intransitive verb into a transitive verb). Always unstressed.
2. Used to change the direct object of a transitive verb, so that what was previously expressed as an optional prepositional object becomes the direct object and vice versa. Always unstressed.

   pyle op die diere skiet → die diere met pyle beskiet

   to shoot arrows at the animals

Usage notes

Not separable. When forming past participles, generally not prepended with ge-.

Danish

Etymology

From Middle Low German be-, from Old Saxon bi-.

Prefix

be-

1. Forms adjectives from nouns, with the sense "having noun".

   hår ("hair") → behåret ("hairy")

   hjerte ("heart") → behjertet ("hearty, brave")

2. Forms verbs from adjectives, with the sense "making" (adjective); -ify.

   svanger ("pregnant") → besvangre ("impregnate")

   rolig ("calm") → berolige ("calm, soothe")

3. Prepends to verbs, having no effect save making the verb transitive

   tvivle → betvivle ("doubt")

   kæmpe → bekæmpe ("fight")

Usage notes

Verbs formed with be- are transitive. Many such words are formed after Middle Low German words.

Derived terms

Danish terms prefixed with be-

References

• “be-” in Den Danske Ordbog

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch be-, bi-, from Old Dutch bi-, be-, from Proto-Germanic *bi-, from Proto-Germanic *bi (“near, by”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁epi (“at, near”).

Cognate with Saterland Frisian be- (“be-”), West Frisian be- (“be-”), English be-, German Low German be- (“be-”), German be- (“be-”), Swedish be- (“be-”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bə/

• Audio:

  (file)

Prefix

be-

1. Used to indicate that a verb is acting on a direct object (making an intransitive verb into a transitive verb). Always unstressed.
2. Used to change the direct object of a transitive verb, so that what was previously expressed as an optional prepositional object becomes the direct object and vice versa. Always unstressed.

   huizen op een land bouwen → een land met huizen bebouwen

   to build houses on a land

Derived terms

Dutch terms prefixed with be-

German

Etymology

From Middle High German be-, from Old High German bi-, from Proto-Germanic *bi-, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁epi.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [bə] (Germany)
• IPA^(key): [b̥e] (Austria)

• Audio:

  (file)

Prefix

be-

1. inseparable verbal prefix that signifies working on something or change of state
2. inseparable verbal prefix that signifies touching the object
3. inseparable verbal prefix that signifies discussing or mentioning the object

Usage notes

• Verbs with this prefix very often take an object in the accusative case.
• The prefix can be used to convert an intransitive verb into a transitive verb, examples:
  • ‎gehen + ‎be- → ‎begehen
  • ‎arbeiten + ‎be- → ‎bearbeiten
  • ‎schnüffeln + ‎be- → ‎beschnüffeln

Derived terms

German terms prefixed with be-

• beachten
• beanstanden
• beantragen
• bearbeiten
• bedauern
• bedenken
• bedeuten
• bedienen
• beehren
• beeilen
• beenden
• beengen
• beerben
• beerdigen
• befehlen
• befehlen
• befeuern
• befördern
• befürchten
• begehen
• begehren
• begleiten
• beglücken
• begünstigen
• behalten
• behandeln
• behaupten
• beirren
• bekannt
• beknien
• bekochen
• bekommen
• beköstigen
• bekümmern
• belassen
• belasten
• belauschen
• belehnen
• belehren
• belobigen
• belohnen
• belügen
• belustigen
• bemächtigen
• bemannen
• benachrichtigen
• benachteiligen
• beobachten
• berauben
• bereichern
• bereuen
• besamen
• beschäftigen
• beschatten
• bescheißen
• beschießen
• beschlafen
• beschleunigen
• beschließen
• beschneiden
• beschönigen
• beschreiten
• beschweren
• beschwichtigen
• beschwören
• besehen
• besetzen
• besitzen
• bespielen
• bestehen
• bestehlen
• bestehlen
• bestellen
• besteuern
• bestrafen
• bestrahlen
• bestreuen
• bestücken
• bestücken
• besuchen
• besudeln
• betanken
• betasten
• betätigen
• betatschen
• betonen
• betören
• betrachten
• betrauern
• betreiben
• betreten
• betrinken
• betrügen
• betüddeln
• betuppen
• beweisen
• bewerkstelligen
• bewilligen
• bezahlen
• bezaubern
• bezeichnen
• bezichtigen
• beziehen
• bezwingen

 

Hungarian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈbɛ]

Prefix

be-

1. (verbal prefix) in (it indicates actions with inward direction)

   Antonym: ki-

   ‎be- + ‎megy (“to go”) → ‎bemegy (“to go into”)

Derived terms

Hungarian verbs prefixed with be-

Related terms

• -ba / -be
• -ban / -ben
• be → be-
• bél (and archaic bel)
• bel-
• bele (belé, beléje)
• -beli (-béli)
• beljebb (bellebb)
• bellebbez (beljebbez)
• belőle
• belső (benső)
• belül (belől, bévül)
• benne
• bennünket, -eteket
• bent (benn)
• -ból / -ből

See also

• Appendix:Hungarian verbal prefixes

References

• Hungarian prefixes in the English Wikipedia

Indonesian

Prefix

be-

1. Alternative form of ber-

Limburgish

Etymology

From Middle Dutch be-, bi-, from Old Dutch bi-, be-, from Proto-Germanic *bi-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bə/

Prefix

be-

1. Inseparable verbal prefix that signifies working on something or change of state.
2. Inseparable verbal prefix that signifies touching the object.
3. Inseparable verbal prefix that signifies discussing or mentioning the object.

Usage notes

• The verb with this prefix takes very often a direct object (i.e., an object in the accusative case).

Related terms

Limburgish terms prefixed with be-

Lithuanian

Etymology

Prefix form of bè (“without”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [bʲɛ]

Prefix

be-

1. prefix form of bè: without, -less

Luxembourgish

Etymology

From Middle High German and Old High German bi-, from Proto-Germanic *bi-, from *bi.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /be/, [bə]

Prefix

be-

1. Inseparable verbal prefix that signifies working on something or change of state.
2. Inseparable verbal prefix that signifies touching the object.
3. Inseparable verbal prefix that signifies discussing or mentioning the object.

Usage notes

• Verbs with this prefix very often take objects in the accusative case.

Derived terms

Luxembourgish terms prefixed with be-

Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch bi-, be-, from Proto-Germanic *bi-.

Prefix

be-

1. A verb prefix with a variety of meanings.

Derived terms

Middle Dutch terms prefixed with be-

Descendants

• Dutch: be-
• Limburgish: be-

Middle English

Prefix

be-

1. Alternative form of bi-

Middle Low German

Etymology

From Old Saxon bi-, from Proto-Germanic *bi-. Cognate to bî (“by”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bə-/, /bɪ-/

Prefix

be-

1. Makes an intransitive verb transitive or denotes that the action is targeted at something or accompanying something.

   vallen (to fall) → bevallen (befall, afflict)

   singen (to sing) → besingen (to sing about something; to sing for the merit of something)

   bischop besingen – to ordain someone as bishop while chanting

2. Denotes on top, onto, often used to create figurative meanings.

   sitten (to sit) → besitten (to sit on top of; to own; to climb onto something; to acquire)

3. Denotes next to, very close.

   bûwen (to build) → bebûwen (to build too close to something else; to besiege)

Alternative forms

• bo-
• bu-
• bi-

Navajo

Prefix

be-

1. his, her (indicates secondary or alienable possession, in opposition to bi-. See for example akʼah, beʼakʼah)

See also

Navajo possessive pronouns

			singular	dual	plural
1st person			shi-	nihi-	danihi-
2nd person			ni-	nihi-	danihi-
3rd person			bi-
4th person (3o)			yi-
4th person (3a)			ha-, hw-
Indefinite person (3i)			a-

Old English

Etymology

An unstressed form of bī, from Proto-Germanic *bi-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /be/

Prefix

be-

1. a productive prefix usually used to form verbs and adjectives, especially:

   verbs with the sense "around, throughout";

   transitive verbs from intransitive verbs, adjectives and nouns

Usage notes

• This prefix is always unstressed, in both nouns and verbs.
• The stressed nominal counterpart is bī-.

Derived terms

Old English terms prefixed with be-

Descendants

• Middle English: bi-, be-, by-, b- (in certain words)
  • English: be-
  • Scots: be-

Old Saxon

Prefix

be-

1. Alternative form of bi-

Swedish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bɛ/, (stressed) /²beː/

Prefix

be-

1. same as German be-, often found in German loanwords, primarily verbs and words based on verbs

Usage notes

In many cases the be- prefix doesn't change the meaning at all, it only makes word look more German. In the name of conciseness and readability, Swedish linguists in the late 19th century (Adolf Noreen, later also Erik Wellander) successfully promoted the idea that this prefix should be dropped from such words, for example befrämja turned into främja.

Derived terms

Swedish terms prefixed with be-

Tooro

Prefix

be-

1. Form used before a verb beginning with the letter e of ba-

   ‎be- + ‎efubika (“to cover oneself”) → ‎beefubika (“they cover themselves”)

Uzbek

Etymology

Inherited from Chagatai بی, from Classical Persian بی‌ـ (bē-).

Prefix

be-

1. -less

   Synonym: -siz

Derived terms

Uzbek terms prefixed with be-

Volapük

Prefix

be-

1. Used to make an indirect object a direct object.
2. Strengthens the meaning of the radical.
3. Implies causing or conferring the meaning of the radical.

Derived terms

Volapük terms prefixed with be-

Wutunhua

Etymology

From Mandarin 不.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [pə]

Prefix

be-

1. not; negates the existence of an action or state conveyed by a verb or adjective, in practice chiefly used as negation in the present or future.

Derived terms

• bai (“to not be”)

 

See also

• bai- (derives a negative command)
• mi- (negates the completion of an action)

 

References

• Juha Janhunen, Marja Peltomaa, Erika Sandman, Xiawu Dongzhou (2008) Wutun (LINCOM's Descriptive Grammar Series), volume 466, LINCOM Europa, →ISBN
• Erika Sandman (2016) A Grammar of Wutun‎^[2], University of Helsinki (PhD), →ISBN

Zulu

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Prefix

be-

1. Class 2 simple noun prefix, used with nouns whose full prefix is abe-.