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”), Swedish besätta (“to fill; occupy; beset”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bɪˈsɛt/
• 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.
2. (transitive, sometimes figurative) To attack or assail, especially from all sides.
   • 1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volumes (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 […]

3. (transitive) To decorate something with jewels etc.
4. (nautical) Of a ship, to get trapped by ice.

Derived terms

• besetting

Translations

to surround or hem in

• Bulgarian: обсаждам (bg) (obsaždam), обкръжавам (bg) (obkrǎžavam)
• Estonian: ümber piirama
• Interlingue:
• Italian: circondare (it)
• Maori: pūrau (by large numbers), popoti, popoke
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Portuguese: cercar (pt)
• Romanian: împresura (ro)
• Russian: окружа́ть (ru) (okružátʹ), тесни́ть (ru) (tesnítʹ)
• Spanish: cercar (es), sitiar (es)

to attack, especially from all sides

• Catalan: assetjar (ca)
• Italian: assediare (it), assaltare (it)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Russian: осажда́ть (ru) (osaždátʹ), тесни́ть (ru) (tesnítʹ)
• Spanish: asediar (es)

to decorate something with jewels, etc.

• Italian: incastonare (it)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Russian: украша́ть (ru) (ukrašátʹ)

get trapped by ice

• Finnish: juuttua jäihin
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• 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
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} assalire (it)

Anagrams

• Beste, beest, beets, tsebe