befile

English

Etymology

From Middle English befilen, from Old English befȳlan (“to befoul, defile, make dirty”), from Proto-West Germanic *bifūlijan (“to make foul”), equivalent to be- +‎ file. Cognate with Scots befile (“to befile”), West Frisian befûjle (“to dirty”), Dutch bevuilen (“to soil, dirty”), German Low German befulen (“to soil, pollute”). See also defile.

Verb

befile (third-person singular simple present befiles, present participle befiling, simple past and past participle befiled)

1. (transitive, dialectal or obsolete) To make filthy; befoul; soil.

Related terms

English terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *puH- (0 c, 17 e)

Anagrams

• belfie, belief