beset

English

Etymology

From Middle English besetten, bisetten, from Old English besettan (“to beset; set beside; set near; appoint; place; own; possess”), from Proto-Germanic *bisatjaną (“to set near; set around”), equivalent to be- +‎ set. Cognate with Saterland Frisian besätte (“to occupy”), West Frisian besette (“to occupy”), Dutch bezetten (“to sit in; occupy; fill”), German Low German besetten (“to occupy”), German besetzen (“to seize; occupy; garrison”), Danish besætte (“to occupy; obsess”), Swedish besätta (“to fill; occupy; beset”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bɪˈsɛt/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛt

Verb

beset (third-person singular simple present besets, present participle besetting, simple past and past participle beset)

1. (transitive) To surround or hem in.

   Synonyms: bebay, beleaguer, besiege, encircle, environ, inbind

   • 1985, Charles L. Scott, The Genus Haworthia (Liliaceae): A Taxonomic Revision, page 80:

     Vegetatively it is the nearest to H. translucens with its oblong-lanceolate leaves, with the margins and keel beset with pellucid teeth, but it differs and is characterised by the greyish-black quadrantly positioned globose flowers; […]

2. (transitive, sometimes figurative) To attack or assail, especially from all sides.

   Synonyms: beleaguer, besiege, environ, harry; see also Thesaurus:pester

   • 1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC:

     “Nay, for matter o’ that, he never doth any mischief,” said the woman; “but to be sure it is necessary he should keep some arms for his own safety; for his house hath been beset more than once; and it is not many nights ago that we thought we heard thieves about it […]

   • 2021 July 28, Paul Clifton, “£67 million Isle of Wight line extension submitted to DfT”, in RAIL, number 936, page 21:

     Track and platforms have been upgraded, but refurbished trains from Vivarail have been beset by software problems.

3. (transitive) To decorate something with jewels etc.

   Synonyms: bedazzle, bejewel, bespangle

4. (nautical) Of a ship, to get trapped by ice.

Derived terms

• besetment
• besetter
• besetting
• umbeset
• unbeset

 

Translations

to surround or hem in

• Arabic: اِكْتَنَفَ (iktanafa)
• Bulgarian: обсаждам (bg) (obsaždam), обкръжавам (bg) (obkrǎžavam)
• Estonian: ümber piirama
• Italian: circondare (it)
• Latin: circumsedeo
• Macedonian: о́пкружи (ópkruži), о́пколи (ópkoli)
• Maori: pūrau (by large numbers), popoti, popoke, karapoti
• Portuguese: cercar (pt)
• Romanian: împresura (ro)
• Russian: окружа́ть (ru) (okružátʹ), тесни́ть (ru) (tesnítʹ)
• Spanish: cercar (es), sitiar (es)
• Ukrainian: ото́чувати impf (otóčuvaty), оточи́ти pf (otočýty)

to attack, especially from all sides

• Catalan: assetjar (ca)
• Italian: assediare (it), assaltare (it)
• Macedonian: о́псади (ópsadi)
• Russian: осажда́ть (ru) (osaždátʹ), тесни́ть (ru) (tesnítʹ)
• Spanish: asediar (es)
• Swedish: ansätta (sv), anfäkta (sv)
• Ukrainian: обляга́ти impf (obljaháty), обсіда́ти impf (obsidáty), ото́чувати impf (otóčuvaty)

to decorate something with jewels, etc.

• Italian: incastonare (it)
• Macedonian: у́краси (úkrasi)
• Russian: украша́ть (ru) (ukrašátʹ)
• Ukrainian: прикраша́ти impf (prykrašáty), оздо́блювати (uk) impf (ozdóbljuvaty)

get trapped by ice

• Finnish: juuttua jäihin
• Italian: incagliare (it)
• Macedonian: за́мрзне (zámrzne)
• Russian: заледене́ть (ru) (zaledenétʹ)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Irish: ^{(please verify)} imdhruid
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} assalire (it)

References

• “beset”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.

Anagrams

• Beets, Beste, beest, beets, tsebe

Afrikaans

Etymology

From Dutch bezetten, from Middle Dutch besetten, from Old Dutch *bisetten, from Proto-Germanic *bisatjaną.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bəˈsɛt/
• Rhymes: -ɛt

Verb

beset (present beset, present participle besettende, past participle beset)

1. (transitive) to occupy, to fill
2. (transitive, military) to occupy militarily

Derived terms

• besetting