bestorm 
storm, agitate.] To overtake with a storm ; 
assail with storms: as, "boats bestiirnml," Sir 
II'. Dun mini, (londibert, iii. b'. 
All is sea be.-nli -. 
Sinks under us, bexturut*, and then devours. 
Yinui'i, Night Thoughts, iv. 
bestow (be-sto'), v. t. [< ME. bcstoin n, liixlmr- 
<'it; < fcc-i'-r- xlotr, place: see state. "] 1. To lay 
up in store; deposit for safe keeping; stow; 
place. 
I have no room where to lirxtmr my fruits. Luke xii. 17. 
He bt'xton-t'd it in a pouch lined with perfumed leather. 
Scott. 
To all appearance I must be [engaged] for many month- 
to come in turning out, examining, sorting, and l>t'*t<>/r/n ; / 
these materials. 
Dr. J. A. II. Murray, 8th Ann. Add. to 1'hilol. Soe. 
2. To lodge, or find quarters for; provide with 
accommodation. 
Well, my masters, I'll leave him with you ; now I - < 
him bestowed, I'll go look for my goods. 
B. JoiiHon, Bartholomew Fair, iv. 1. 
3. To dispose of. 
Give me but the name and nature of your malefactor, 
and I'll bestow him according to his merits. 
\li,l,lteton(aiul others), The Widow, i. 1. 
4. To give ; confer ; impart gratuitously : fol- 
lowed by on or upon before the recipient: as, 
to bestow praise or blame impartially. 
Consecrate yourselves . . . to the Lord, . . . that he may 
bestow upon you a blessing. Ex. xxxii. 29. 
Though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor . . . and 
have not charity, it proltteth me nothing. 1 Cor. xiii. 3. 
Around its entry nodding poppies grow, 
\ nil all cool simples that sweet rest bestow. 
Dryden, Ceyx and Alcyone, 1. 287. 
Did you bestow your fortune, or did you only lend it? 
Goldsmith, Citizen of the World, Ixvi. 
5. To give in marriage. 
I could have bestowed her upon a fine gentleman. Taller. 
6. To apply ; make use of ; use ; employ. 
I determine to bestow 
Some time in learning languages abroad. 
Ford, Love's Sacrifice, i. 1. 
Otherwise the whole force of the war would have been 
infallibly bestowed there. Swift. 
7f. To behave or deport. 
The boy . . . bestows himself 
Like a ripe sister. Shak., As you Like it, iv. 3. 
= Syn. 4. Confer, Grant, etc. See give. 
bestowable (be-sto'a-bl), a. [< bestow + -able."] _ 
Capable of being bestowed, 
bestowaget, [< bestow + -age."] Stowage. 
bestowal (be-sto'al), . [< bestow + -al.] Be- 
stowment. 
The one did himself honour in the bestowal, the other 
in the acceptance, of such a gratuity. 
Milman, Latin Christianity, iv. 3. 
bestower (be-sto'er), n. One who bestows; 
a giver ; a disposer. 
bestowment (be-sto'ment), . [< bestow + 
-ment.] 1. The act of giving gratuitously; a 
conferring. 2. That which is conferred or 
given; a donation. 
They almost refuse to give due praise and credit to 
God's own bestowments. /. Taylor. 
bestraddle (be-strad'l), v. t. [< be- 1 + straddle.] 
To bestride. See straddle. 
bestraughtt (be-straf ), pp. [A modification of 
distraught, with prefix be- for dis-: see dis- 
traught.] Distracted; mad: as, "I am not 
bestraught," Shak., T. of the S., Ind., ii. 
bestraughtedt (be-stra'ted), a. [Irreg. < be- 
straught.] Distracted. Norden. [Kare.] 
bestrawt (be-stra'), i: t. [< be- 1 + straw for 
strew.] An obsolete form of bestrew. 
bestreak (be-strek'), v. t. [< be- 1 + streak.] 
To mark or cover with streaks. 
bestrew, bestrow (be-stro', -stro'), v. t.; pret. 
bestrewed, bestrowed, pp. bestrewed, bestrewn, be- 
strowed, bestrown, ppr. bestrewing, bestrowing. 
[< ME. bistrewen, < AS. bestrcowian (= D. 6f- 
strooijen = MHG. bestrfiuweti, G. bestreueti = Sw. 
bestro = Dan. bestro), < be- 4- streowian, strew : 
see be- 1 and strew, strow.~\ 1. To strew or scat- 
ter about ; throw or drop here and there. 
Those blossoms also, and those dropping gums, 
That lie bestroien. Milton, P. L., iv. 631. 
2. To strew anything upon ; cover or partially 
cover with things strewn or scattered. 
Discord shall bestrew 
The union of your bed with weeds so loathly, 
That you shall hate it both. Shak., Tempest, iv. 1. 
Strip the bough whose mellow fruit bestrews 
The ripening corn beneath it. 
Wordsworth, Between Namnr and Liege. 
bestrid (be-strid'). Preterit and past participle 
of bestride. 
r>:tr> 
bestride (be-strid'), V. t.; prct. bestrode or br- 
striil, pp. bestridden, ln-xtriti, improperly be- 
x/riil<tl\ (Strnic), ppr. bestriding. [\ ME. !- 
xlriikn (prrt. lir.itrnnil. lusli'mli', pp. wanting), 
< AS. iHvlriilnii (luirx MttrtdUH I^vc), < be- + 
ii, stride.] 1. To straddle over; mount 
astride of ; stretch the legs or eorregpondtag 
parts across so ;is to embrace : as, to ln-xlr/ili' a 
horse; spectacles li<-xtridiii<i the nose. 
\Vhy, man. lie duth l,<'t, !'! tlir narniu \\orld 
Like a Colossus. filmic., ,\. ('., I. 2. 
The animal lie ln'nt, >,<!> wa* a liroken-iliiwn plough -horse. 
/,:'..;, .-k.-trh Hook. |i. i:i. 
2. To step over ; cross by stepping. 
U hen I nrst my weililril mistress saw 
Ili^triflr my threshold. ,s'Ai-., Cor., iv. 5. 
beteach 
lo .-mother who pledges a forfeit in return on 
the opposite contingency. 2. That which is 
wagereil : also, that about which a wager is 
made. 
Hut, on : Six llarliary horses against ix Krt-nch sword, 
their jissiglis. anil tlirt-i- lih.Tal coiir.'jl. .1 , ;n i lagat: that's 
tli.' l-'mirli lirt against tin- Danish. Slink., Hamlet, v. :>.. 
bet-'t. An obsolete preterit <if IMU/I. 
Beta 1 (I'f'tji), n. [h., a beet: see beet 1 ."] A 
genus of apetalous plants, natural onler f'/n - 
See lint 1 . 
beta- (be'tii), n. [I... repr. ( ir. V/ra, name of the 
character ii, ,i.] 1. The second letter of the 
bestrode (be-sti-od'). Preterit of 
bestrow, r. t. See bext,-* . 
bestrutt (be-struf), r. t. [< be- 1 + xlrut.] To 
distend. 
Her papw Intuit w ith milk. 
IIMainl, tr. of i'lutareh, p. 519. 
bestuck (be-stuk'). Preterit and past parti- 
ciple of bexticl;. 
bestud (be-stud'), r. t. ; pret. and pp. liestuddi-d, 
ppr. hrxtmldiiig. [< be- 1 + ,<rf 2 .] To set with 
or as with studs ; adorn with bosses. 
rii<- unsought diamonds 
Would so imhlaze the forehead of the deep, 
Ami su t:<tnil with stars, that they below 
Would grow inured to light. Miltnn, Comus, 1. 734. 
beswaddle (be-swod'l), v. t. [< be- 1 + stead- 
<llc.'\ To envelop in swaddling-clothes. W. 
Whitehcad. 
beswiket, v. t. [ME. beswiken, < AS. bexiriciin 
(= OS. bisii'ikan = D. bezwijken = OHG. beswih- 
han = Sw. besi'ika = Dan. oesvige), deceive, be- 
tray, < be- + swican (= OS. swikan = OFries. 
swikft = OHG. swihhan = Icel. svikja = Sw. 
srika = Dan. svige), deceive, weaken.] To al- 
lure, (tower. 
beswinget (be-swinj'), v. t. [ME. not found; 
AS. beswingaii, only in pp. bexwungen, scourge, 
beat, < be- + swingan, scourge, swinge.] To 
scourge; beat. 
You had best to use your sword better, lest I beswinge 
you. Greene, Orlando Furioso. 
beswinkt, - t- [< ME. beswinken, < AS. beswin- 
can, earn by toil, < be- + swincan, swink, toil : 
see be- 1 and swink.] To earn. 
That of a poison which they drunke 
They hadaen that they have beswunke. 
(lower, Cunt. Amant., i. 131. 
besyt, a. A Middle English form of busy. 
bet't (bet), adv. [< ME. bet, < AS. bet = OFries. 
bet = OS. bat, bet = OD. bat, bet = OHG. MHG. 
baz, G. baas = Icel. betr = Goth, "batis (in adj. 
batiza), better, orig. adj. in the neut. ace. with 
reg. compar. suffix (lost in AS., etc.; hence the 
later form before, betre, E. better, adv., prop, 
neut. of the inflected adj. betera -: see better 1 ), 
< 'bat, a positive not used, from the root which 
appears also in Icel. batna, E. batten 1 , become 
or make better, improve, AS. bot, E. boot 1 , ad- 
vantage, improvement, AS. betan, E.'beefi, im- 
prove, etc. : see batten 1 , battle^, boot 1 , beet?, 
etc.] Obsolete and earlier Middle English form 
of better 1 . 
"Go bet," quod he, "and axe redily 
What eors is this that passeth heer forby." 
Chaucer, Pardoner's Tale, 1. 205. 
It had been bet for me still to have kept my quiet chair. 
Gascoitjne. 
bet 2 (bet), r. ; pret. and pp. bet or betted, ppr. 
betting. [First in early mod. E. ; prob. snort 
for abet (cf. 6ate 2 , short for abate) ; if so, prob. 
first as a noun, instigation, encouragement, 
support, backing, whence the verb, to give sup- 
port, etc.] I. trans. To pledge as a forfeit to 
another who makes a similar pledge in return, 
on a future contingency, in support of an affir- 
mation or opinion ; stake ; wager. 
John of Gaunt loved him well, and betted much money 
on liis head. Shak., 2 Hen. IV., iii. 2. 
II. intrans. To lay a wager; stake money or 
anything of value upon a contingency You 
bet, certainly; of course. [U. S., originally California, 
slang.] 
" Friend," said I to a Jehu, whose breath suggested gin, 
"Can thee convey me straightway to a reputable inn?" 
His answer's gross irrelevance I shall not soon forget 
Instead of simply yea or nay, he gruffly said, " You bet / " 
The Century, XI. 142. 
bet 2 (bet), w. [See the verb.] 1. The pledging 
of some valuable thing, as money (or of the do- 
ing of some onerous act), to be forfeited, in case 
some future event happens contrary to the as- 
sertion or belief of the one making the pledge, 
alphabet, corresponding to English HOT 
b. 2. As a classifier in astronomy, chemistry, 
etc., the second in any series. See nl/i/m, 'J. 
betacism (be'ta-si/m), ;/. [< NL. Ix-lKrixniua, 
< L. beta, the (Greek) letter /), b. Cf. iotiifixm. 
rhotacixm.'] Conversion of other sounds to, or 
their confusion with, a 6-sound. 
Even these forms were threatened with destruction by 
the >!U'rail of /ietacimniiJt, whereby amavit was)iri.ii'Hiiir,-i| 
like anuililt, and vice vep.ii. Aiuer. ./,'. I'liil,,!.. VI. .Mil. 
betag (be-tag'), v. t.; pret. and pp. lnt<i</</i,i, 
ppr. / lui/gini/. [< be- 1 + tag."] To furnish' with 
a tag; deck with tags. 
Betagned with verse. Churrhill, Tin- iMiost, Iv. 
betail (be-tal'), t'. t. [< be- 1 + tail 1 ."] 1. To 
furnish with a tail: as, "bctailfd and bepow- 
dered," Goldsmith, Citizen of the World, iii. 
2. To take the tail off: a word jocularly form- 
ed on the analogy of behead. 
[The sportsman] puts his heavy boot on the beast's Ixxly, 
and there both beheads and Mails him. TroUope. 
betain (be'ta-in), n. [Irreg. < L. beta + -i2.] 
A chemical base found in the common beet and 
mangel-wurzel. 
betake 1 (be-tak'), v. [< be- 1 + take. The corre- 
sponding ME. form betaken, bitaken (pret. betok, 
pp. betaken) seems to have been used only in 
the senses of betake? or bettach, with which it 
was confused. There is no AS. 'betacan ; but 
cf. Sw. betaka = Dan. betagc, take, deprive, 
cutoff.] I. trans. If. To seize; take hold of ; 
take. 
Then to his handes that writt he did betake.. 
Spenser, F. Q., I. xii. 25. 
2. Reflexively, to take one's self (to); repair; 
resort ; have recourse. 
The rest, in imitation, to like arms 
Hetook them. Milton, P. L., vi. C63. 
Betake you to your silence, and your sleep. 
B. Jonson, Volpone, I. 1. 
They betook themselves to treaty and submission. 
Burke, Abridg. of Eng. Hist., I. 1. 
Il.t intrans. To take one's self. 
But here ly downe, and to thy rest Make. 
Spenser, F. Q., I. ix. 44. 
betake 2 !, v. (.;pret. betook, betauglit, pp. betmight, 
ppr. betaking. [ME. betaken, etc., with forms 
prop, belonging to betake 1 , q. v., but with va- 
rious senses of between, betechen, beteach: see 
beteach.'] Same as beteach. 
betalkt (be-tak'), . i. [< be- 1 + talk."] To talk 
repeatedly. Drai/ton. 
betallow (be-tal'6), c. (. [< be- 1 + tallow."] To 
cover with tallow. Ford. 
betaughtt (be-taf). Preterit of betake* and be- 
teach. 
beteH, ., bete 2 t, ., bete 3 t, v., etc. Obsolete 
form of beat 1 , beet 1 , beet 2 , etc. 
bete (bat), . [F., < OF. beste, a beast : see 
beast."] In the game of solo, a forfeit __ Bte 
noire (F. pron. bat nwor). [F., literally black lieast.l A 
bugbear ; a person or thing regarded with special dislike 
or aversion. 
The newspapers have some words of this sort dear to 
them, but the bftes noire* of all lovers of straightforward 
English, such as "peruse" and "replete." 
The Atlantic , LVII. 425. 
beteach t (be-tech'), r. t. [< ME. betechen, bitech- 
en, between (pTet.Jbetaithte, betahte, pp. betauhf, 
betaht), < AS. betaican (pret. betcehte, pp. betaiht), 
show, assign, give over, deliver, commit, < be- 
+ taican, snow, teach: see be- 1 and teach. Ow- 
ing to a similarity of form, the ME. betaken 
(pret. betook, betok, pp. betaken), < be- + taken, 
take (see betake 1 ), was confused with betechen, 
and used in the same senses.] 1. To give; 
hand over; deliver up. 
Judas Iscariot wente forth to the princis of prestis, and 
said to hem, What wolen ye give to me and I schal bitakr. 
him to you? Wyclif, Mat. xxvi. 14, 15. 
2. To intrust; commit; recommend to the 
care of. 
Such a ryrn the devel I bifteche. 
Chaucer, Prol. to Tale of Melibeus, 1. 0. 
