Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

Be

Be

(bē)
,
Verb.
I.
[
imp.
Was
(wŏz)
;
p. p.
Been
(bĭn)
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Being
.]
[OE.
been
,
beon
, AS.
beón
to be,
beóm
I am; akin to OHG.
bim
,
pim
, G.
bin
, I am, Gael. & Ir.
bu
was, W.
bod
to be, Lith.
bu-ti
, O. Slav.
by-ti
, to be, L.
fu-i
I have been,
fu-turus
about to be,
fo-re
to be about to be, and perh. to
fieri
to become, Gr.
φῦναι
to be born, to be, Skr.
bhū
to be. This verb is defective, and the parts lacking are supplied by verbs from other roots,
is
,
was
, which have no radical connection with
be
. The various forms,
am
,
are
,
is
,
was
,
were
, etc., are considered grammatically as parts of the verb “to be”, which, with its conjugational forms, is often called the
substantive verb
. √97. Cf.
Future
,
Physic
.]
1.
To exist actually, or in the world of fact; to have existence.
To
be
contents his natural desire.
Pope.
To
be
, or not to
be
: that is the question.
Shakespeare
2.
To exist in a certain manner or relation, – whether as a reality or as a product of thought; to exist as the subject of a certain predicate, that is, as having a certain attribute, or as belonging to a certain sort, or as identical with what is specified, – a word or words for the predicate being annexed;
as, to
be
happy; to
be
here; to
be
large, or strong; to
be
an animal; to
be
a hero; to
be
a nonentity; three and two
are
five; annihilation
is
the cessation of existence; that
is
the man
.
3.
To take place; to happen;
as, the meeting
was
on Thursday
.
4.
To signify; to represent or symbolize; to answer to.
The field
is
the world.
Matt. xiii. 38.
The seven candlesticks which thou sawest
are
the seven churches.
Rev. i. 20.
☞ The verb to be (including the forms is, was, etc.) is used in forming the passive voice of other verbs; as, John has
been
struck by James. It is also used with the past participle of many intransitive verbs to express a state of the subject. But have is now more commonly used as the auxiliary, though expressing a different sense; as, “Ye have come too late – but ye are come. ” “The minstrel boy to the war is gone.” The present and imperfect tenses form, with the infinitive, a particular future tense, which expresses necessity, duty, or purpose; as, government is to be supported; we are to pay our just debts; the deed
is
to be signed to-morrow.
Have or had been, followed by to, implies movement. “I have been to Paris.”
Sydney Smith.
“Have you been to Franchard ?”
R. L. Stevenson.
☞ Been, or ben, was anciently the plural of the indicative present. “Ye ben light of the world.”
Wyclif, Matt. v. 14.
Afterwards be was used, as in our Bible: “They that be with us are more than they that
be
with them.”
2 Kings vi. 16.
Ben was also the old infinitive: “To ben of such power.”
R. of Gloucester.
Be is used as a form of the present subjunctive: “But if it be a question of words and names.”
Acts xviii. 15.
But the indicative forms,
is
and
are
, with
if
, are more commonly used.
Be it so
,
a phrase of supposition, equivalent to
suppose it to be so
; or of permission, signifying
let it be so
.
Shak.
–
If so be
,
in case.
–
To be from
,
to have come from; as, from what place are you? I am from Chicago.
–
To let be
,
to omit, or leave untouched; to let alone.
“Let be, therefore, my vengeance to dissuade.”
Spenser.
Syn. –
To be
,
Exist
.
The verb to be, except in a few rare cases, like that of Shakespeare’s “To be, or not to be”, is used simply as a copula, to connect a subject with its predicate; as, man is mortal; the soul is immortal. The verb to exist is never properly used as a mere copula, but points to things that stand forth, or have a substantive being; as, when the soul is freed from all corporeal alliance, then it truly exists. It is not, therefore, properly synonymous with
to be
when used as a copula, though occasionally made so by some writers for the sake of variety; as in the phrase “there exists [is] no reason for laying new taxes.” We may, indeed, say, “a friendship has long existed between them,” instead of saying, “there has long been a friendship between them;” but in this case, exist is not a mere copula. It is used in its appropriate sense to mark the friendship as having been long in existence.

Webster 1828 Edition

Be

BE

,
Verb.
I.
substantive, ppr.being; pp.been.[The sense is to stand, remain or be fixed; hence to continue. This verb is defective, and its defects are supplied by verbs from other roots, as, is, was, were, which have no radical connection with be. The case is the same with the substantive verb in most languages.]
1.
To be fixed; to exist; to have a real state or existence,for a longer or shorter time.
Let this mind be in you, which was in Christ Jesus. Phil.2.
To be, contents his natural desire.
2.
To be made to be; to become.
And they twain shall be one flesh. Math.19. Jer.32.
3. To remain. Let the garment be as it was made.
4.
To be present in a place. Where was I at the time? When will you be at my house?
5.
To have a particular manner of being or happening; as, how is this affair? how was it? what were the circumstances?
This verb is used as an auxiliary in forming the tenses of other verbs, and particularly in giving them the passive form; as, he has been disturbed. It forms, with the infinitive, a particular future tense, which often expresses duty, necessity or purpose; as, government is to be supported; we are to pay our just debts.
Let be is to omit,or leave untouched; to let alone.
Let be,said he, my prey.

BE

, a prefix, as in because, before, beset, bedeck,is the same word as by. It is common to the English, Saxon, Gothic, German, Dutch, Danish and Swedish languages. It occurs probably in the Russian, but is written po, as it is in possideo and a few other words in the Latin. It denotes nearness, closeness, about, or, at, from some root signifying to pass or to press. [See By.]
That this word is the Shemitic, used as a prefix, is certain, not only from its general applications, which may be seen by comparing the uses of the word, in the Heb. for instance, with those in the Saxon; but from its use in particular phrases, particularly in its use before the name of the Supreme being in swearing.

Definition 2024

Be

Be

See also: Appendix:Variations of "be"

Translingual

Symbol

Be

  1. (chemistry) Symbol for beryllium.

German

Noun

Be

  1. (music) flat

be

be

See also: Appendix:Variations of "be"

English

Verb

be ‎(highly irregular)

  1. (intransitive, now literary) To exist; to have real existence.
    • 1526, Bible, tr. William Tyndale, Matthew 2:
      Rachel wepynge ffor her chyldren, and wolde nott be comforted because they were not.
    • c. 1600, William Shakespeare, Hamlet:
      To be, or not to be, that is the Question […].
    • 1603, John Florio, translating Michel de Montaigne, Essayes, London: Edward Blount, OCLC 946730821, II.12:
      it were great sottishnesse, and apparent false-hood, to say, that that is which is not yet in being, or that already hath ceased from being.
    • 1643, Thomas Browne, Religio Medici, II.2:
      There is surely a peece of Divinity in us, something that was before the Elements, and owes no homage unto the Sun.
    • 2004, Richard Schickel, "Not Just an African Story", Time, 13 December:
      The genial hotel manager of the past is no more. Now owner of a trucking concern and living in Belgium, Rusesabagina says the horrors he witnessed in Rwanda "made me a different man."
  2. With there as dummy subject: to exist.
    • 1598, William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice:
      Some men there are loue not a gaping Pigge: / Some that are mad, if they behold a Cat: / And others, when the bag-pipe sings i'th nose, / Cannot containe their Vrine for affection.
    • 1817, Jane Austen, Persuasion:
      "There is a sort of domestic enjoyment to be known even in a crowd, and this you had."
    • 2011, Mark Sweney, The Guardian, 6 July:
      "There has been lots of commentary on who is staying and who is staying out and this weekend will be the real test," said one senior media buying agency executive who has pulled the advertising for one major client.
  3. (intransitive) To occupy a place.
    The cup is on the table.
  4. (intransitive) To occur, to take place.
    When will the meeting be?
  5. (intransitive, without predicate) elliptical form of "be here", "go to and return from" or similar.
    The postman has been today, but my tickets have still not yet come.
    I have been to Spain many times.
  6. (transitive, copulative) Used to name the age of a subject.
    I'm 20.
  7. (transitive, copulative) Used to indicate that the subject and object are the same.
    Knowledge is bliss.
  8. (transitive, copulative, mathematics) Used to indicate that the values on either side of an equation are the same.
    3 times 5 is fifteen.
  9. (transitive, copulative) Used to indicate that the subject plays the role of the predicate nominal.
    François Mitterrand was president of France from 1981 to 1995.
  10. (transitive, copulative) Used to connect a noun to an adjective that describes it.
    The sky is blue.
  11. (transitive, copulative) Used to indicate that the subject has the qualities described by a noun or noun phrase.
    The sky is a deep blue today.
  12. (transitive, auxiliary) Used to form the passive voice.
    The dog was drowned by the boy.
    • 1995, C. K. Ogden, Psyche: An Annual General and Linguistic Psychology 1920-1952, C. K. Ogden, ISBN 9780415127790, page 13:
      Study courses of Esperanto and Ido have been broadcast.
  13. (transitive, auxiliary) Used to form the continuous forms of various tenses.
    The woman is walking.
    I shall be writing to you soon.
    We liked to chat while we were eating.
    • 1995, C. K. Ogden, Psyche: An Annual General and Linguistic Psychology 1920-1952, C. K. Ogden, ISBN 9780415127790, page 13:
      In the possibility of radio uses of a constructed language — and such experiments are proving successful—vast sums of money and untold social forces may be involved.
  14. (archaic) Used to form the perfect aspect with certain intransitive verbs, most of which indicate motion. Often still used for "to go"
    • 1606, Macbeth by William Shakespeare:
      They are not yet come back. (instead of the modern They have not yet come back.)
    • 1850, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, The Blessed Damozel, ll.67-68
      ‘I wish that he were come to me, / For he will come,’ she said.
    • Matthew 28:6 (various translations, from the King James Version of 1611 to Revised Version of 1881):
      He is not here; for he is risen […].
    • 1922, A. E. Housman, Last Poems XXV, l.13:
      The King with half the East at heel is marched from lands of morning;
  15. (transitive, auxiliary) Used to form future tenses, especially the future periphrastic.
    I am to leave tomorrow.
    I would drive you, were I to obtain a car.
  16. Used to link a subject to a count or measurement.
    This building is three hundred years old.
    It is almost eight.
    I am 75 kilograms.
  17. (With since) used to indicate passage of time since the occurrence of an event.
    It has been three years since my grandmother died. (similar to My grandmother died three years ago, but emphasizes the intervening period)
    It had been six days since his departure, when I received a letter from him.
  18. (often impersonal) Used to indicate weather, air quality, or the like.
    It is hot in Arizona, but it is not usually humid.
    Why is it so dark in here?
  19. (African American Vernacular, Caribbean, auxiliary, not conjugated) tend to do, often do; marks the habitual aspect.
    • 1996, David Sheffield, Barry W. Blaustein, Tom Shadyac and Steve Oedekerk, screenplay of The Nutty Professor
      Women be shoppin'! You cannot stop a woman from shoppin'!

Quotations

  • For usage examples of this term, see Citations:be.

Conjugation

  • The verb be is the most irregular non-defective verb in Standard English. Unlike other verbs, which distinguish at most five forms (as in do–does–doing–did–done), be distinguishes eight:
    • Be itself is the plain form, used as the infinitive, as the imperative, and as the present subjunctive.
      I want to be a father someday. (infinitive)
      If that be true... (present subjunctive)
      Allow the truth to be heard! (infinitive)
      Please be here by eight o'clock. (imperative)
      The librarian asked that the rare books not be touched. (present subjunctive)
      Be is also used as the present tense indicative form in the alternate, dynamic / lexical conjugation of be:
      What do we do? We be ourselves. (first-person plural present indicative, lexical be)
      but: Who are we? We are human beings. (first-person plural present indicative, copula be)
      It is also an archaic alternative form of the indicative, especially in the plural:
      The powers that be, are ordained of God. (Romans 13:1, Tyndale Bible, 1526)
      We are true men; we are no spies: We be twelve brethren... (Genesis 42:31-2, King James Version, 1611)
      I think it be thine indeed, for thou liest in it. (Hamlet, Act V, Scene 1, circa 1600)
    • Am, are, and is are the forms of the present indicative. Am is the first-person singular (used with I); is is the third-person singular (used with he, she, it and other subjects that would be used with does rather than do); and are is both the second-person singular and the plural (used with we, you, they, and any other plural subjects).
      Am I in the right place? (first-person singular present indicative)
      You are even taller than your brother! (second-person singular present indicative)
      Where is the library? (third-person singular present indicative)
      These are the biggest shoes we have. (plural present indicative)
    • Was and were are the forms of the past indicative and past subjunctive (like did). In the past indicative, was is the first– and third-person singular (used with I, as well as with he, she, it and other subjects that would be used with does rather than do), and were is both the second-person singular and the plural (used with we, you, they, and any other plural subjects). In the traditional past subjunctive, were is used with all subjects, though many speakers do not actually distinguish the past subjunctive from the past indicative, and therefore use was with first– and third-person singular subjects even in cases where other speakers would use were.
      I was out of town. (first-person singular past indicative)
      You were the first person here. (second-person singular past indicative)
      The room was dirty. (third-person singular past indicative)
      We were angry at each other. (plural past indicative)
      I wish I were more sure. (first-person singular past subjunctive; was is also possible, though considered less correct)
      If she were here, she would know what to do. (third-person singular past subjunctive; was is also possible, though considered less correct)
    • Being is the gerund and present participle, used in noun-like constructions, in the progressive aspect, and after various verbs (like doing). (It's also used as an actual noun; for those senses, see the entry for being itself.)
      I don't like being here. (gerund)
      All of a sudden, he's being nice to everyone. (present participle in the progressive aspect)
      It won't stop being a problem until someone does something about it. (present participle in the progressive aspect)
    • Been is the past participle, used in the perfect aspect. In Middle English, it was also the infinitive.
      It's been that way for a week and a half.
  • In archaic or obsolete forms of English, with the pronoun thou, the verb be has a few additional forms:
    • When the pronoun thou was in regular use, the forms art, wast, and wert were the corresponding present indicative, past indicative, and past subjunctive, respectively.
    • As thou became less common and more highly marked, a special present-subjunctive form beest developed (replacing the regular present subjunctive form be, still used with all other subjects). Additionally, the form wert, previously a past subjunctive form, came to be used as a past indicative as well.
  • The forms am, is, and are can contract with preceding subjects: I’m ‎(“I am”), ’s ‎(“is”), ’re ‎(“are”). The form are most commonly contracts with personal pronouns (we’re ‎(“we are”), you’re ‎(“you are”), they’re ‎(“they are”)), but contractions with other subjects is possible; the form is contracts quite freely with a variety of subjects. These contracted forms, however, are possible only when there is an explicit, non-preposed complement, and they cannot be stressed; therefore, contraction does not occur in sentences such as the following:
    Who's here? —I am.
    I wonder what it is.
    I don't want to be involved. —But you are involved, regardless.
  • Several of the finite forms of be have special negative forms, containing the suffix -n’t, that can be used instead of adding the adverb not. Specifically, the forms is, are, was, and were have the negative forms isn’t, aren’t, wasn’t, and weren’t. The form be itself does not, even in finite uses, with “not be” being used in the present subjunctive and “do not be” or “don’t be” (or, in dated use, “be not”) being used in the imperative. The form am has the negative forms aren’t, amn’t, and arguably ain’t, but all of these are in restricted use; see their entries for details.
  • Outside of Standard English, there is some variation in usage of some forms; some dialects, for example, use is or ’s throughout the present indicative (supplanting, in whole or in part, am and are), and/or was throughout the past indicative and past subjunctive (supplanting were).

Usage notes

When used copulatively with a pronoun, traditional grammar puts the pronoun in the subjective case (I, he, she, we, they) rather than the objective case (me, him, her, us, them), regardless of which side of the copula it is placed. For example, "I was the masked man" and "The masked man was I" would both be considered correct, while "The masked man was me" and "Me was the masked man" would both be incorrect. However, most colloquial speech treats the verb be as transitive, in which case the pronoun is used in the objective case if it occurs after the copula: "I was the masked man" but "The masked man was me". This paradigm applies even if the copula is linking two pronouns - "I am her" but "She is me" (versus the traditional "I am she" and "She is I") and "Am I me?" (versus the traditional "Am I I?").

Synonyms

  • (used to form passive): get

Translations

Note: This verb has many irregularities in both form and usage in many languages. Use translations with caution.

References

  • “be” in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, Houghton Mifflin Company, 2000.
  • “be” in Dictionary.com Unabridged, v1.0.1, Lexico Publishing Group, 2006.
  • "be" in WordNet 2.0, Princeton University, 2003.

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: had · you · not · #19: be · at · by · on

Anagrams

Albanian

Etymology

From Proto-Albanian *baidā, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeidʰ- 'persuade' (compare Ancient Greek πείθω ‎(peíthō)).

Noun

be f (indefinite plural be, definite singular beja, definite plural betë)

  1. oath
  2. vow, swearing
Derived terms

Balinese

Noun

be

  1. fish
  2. meat, fish, tofu, egg (everything that is eaten with rice except vegetables)

Catalan

Etymology 1

Noun

be f ‎(plural bes)

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter B/b.
Derived terms
  • be alta
Usage notes

In some dialects of Catalan, the sounds associated with the letter b and the letter v are the same: [β]. In order to differentiate be and ve in those dialects, the letters are often called be alta ‎(“high B”) and ve baixa ‎(“low V”).

Etymology 2

Onomatopoeic from the sound of a lamb.

Noun

be m ‎(plural bens)

  1. sheep, ram, ewe, lamb; an individual of the species Ovis aries.

Dorasque

Noun

be

  1. (Changuena, Chumulu, Gualaca) night

References

  • Alphonse Louis Pinart, Vocabulario Castellano-dorasque, Dialectos Chumulu, Gualaca Y Changuina (1890)

Faroese

Noun

be n (genitive singular bes, plural be)

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter B/b.

Declension

n4 Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative be beið be beini
Accusative be beið be beini
Dative be(i) benum beum beunum
Genitive bes besins bea beanna

See also

Guerrero Amuzgo

Adjective

be

  1. red

Hungarian

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [ˈbɛ]

Adverb

be

  1. in

Derived terms

See also

Ido

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /be/, /bɛ/

Noun

be ‎(plural be-i)

  1. The name of the Latin script letter B/b.

See also

Japanese

Romanization

be

  1. rōmaji reading of べ (hiragana)
  2. rōmaji reading of ベ (katakana)

Karajá

Noun

be

  1. water

References

  • David Lee Fortune, Gramática Karajá: um Estudo Preliminar em Forma Transformacional

Latin

Pronunciation

Noun

bē ‎(indeclinable)

  1. The name of the letter B.

Coordinate terms

References

  • Arthur E. Gordon, The Letter Names of the Latin Alphabet (University of California Press, 1973; volume 9 of University of California Publications: Classical Studies), part III: “Summary of the Ancient Evidence”, page 32: "Clearly there is no question or doubt about the names of the vowels A, E, I, O, U. They are simply long A, long E, etc. (ā, ē, ī, ō, ū). Nor is there any uncertainty with respect to the six mutes B, C, D, G, P, T. Their names are bē, cē, dē, gē, pē, tē (each with a long E). Or about H, K, and Q: they are hā, kā, kū—each, again, with a long vowel sound."

Lithuanian

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [bʲɛ]

Preposition

be ‎(with genitive)

  1. (shows absence of something) without
  2. besides; but, except

Antonyms

Lojban

Cmavo

be

  1. Connects the following sumti to the previous sumti as an internal sumti (subordinate (relative) clause); by default as the x2argument.
    le klama be la paris.
    the one (who is) going to Paris
    le klama be fo la paris.
    the one (who is) travelling via Paris
    tumxra be la mexikos. zei tcadu
    Map of(i.e., which depicts) Mexico City.
    ti zbasu be lo takybli bei lo kliti
    This makes bricks out of clay.
    ti zbasu lo takybli lo kliti
    This makes bricks out of clay.

Usage notes

  • The cmavo be'o can be used to indicate the termination of the internal sumti, but is only required if the parsing of the sentence would otherwise be ambiguous.

Derived terms

Related terms

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From Old Norse biðja

Verb

be ‎(imperative be, present tense ber, passive bes, simple past ba or bad, past participle bedt, present participle beende)

  1. to pray
  2. to ask something of someone

Synonyms

Derived terms

Related terms

References

  • “be” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
  • “be” in The Ordnett Dictionary

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Old Norse biðja

Verb

be ‎(present tense ber or bed or beder, past tense bad, past participle bede or bedi or bedd or bedt, present participle bedande, imperative be)

  1. to pray
  2. to ask something of someone

Synonyms

Derived terms

Related terms

References

  • “be” in The Bokmål Dictionary / The Nynorsk Dictionary.
  • “be” in The Ordnett Dictionary

Old Irish

Alternative forms

  • (2nd sg. pres. subj.): ba

Verb

be

  1. second-person singular present subjunctive of is
  2. first-person singular future of is
  3. second-person singular future of is

Old Prussian

Conjunction

be

  1. and
    wāiklis be mērgā - a boy and a girl

Preposition

be

  1. without

Polish

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /bɛ/

Noun

be n ‎(indeclinable)

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter B/b.

Adjective

be ‎(indeclinable, comparative bardziej be, superlative najbardziej be)

  1. (childish) bad, not suitable, not eatable

Interjection

be

  1. (onomatopoeia) A sound of a sheep

Scots

Etymology

Old English bēon.

Verb

tae be

  1. To be.

Conjugation

    Northern Scots conjugation of be (highly irregular, suppletive)
infinitive tae be
present participle bein
past participle been
person singular plural
A ee hei/shi/it oo yow yins they
regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative
present im em, um imni ir er, ur irni is es isni ir er, ur irni is es isni ir er, ur irni
past wuz wuz, wur wuz wur

Serili

Noun

be

  1. water

References

  • Roger Blench, The Enggano (in notes)
  • ABVD (as 'bɛ)
  • ASJP (as bE, representing bɛ)

Slovene

Etymology

Probably from the German name of the letter B (pronounced [beː]).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈbéː/
  • Tonal orthography: bẹ̑

Noun

bé m inan ‎(genitive bêja, nominative plural bêji)

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter B/b.

Inflection

Synonyms

Spanish

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /be/

Etymology 1

Noun

be f ‎(plural bes)

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter B/b.

Etymology 2

Echoic

Noun

be m ‎(plural bes)

  1. baa (bleating of a sheep)

Swedish

Etymology

From older bedja, from Old Swedish biþia, from Old Norse biðja, from Proto-Germanic *bidjaną, from Proto-Indo-European *gʷʰedʰ-. Cognate with Danish bede, Icelandic biðja, English bid, Dutch bidden, German bitten.

Pronunciation

  • Homophone: B
  • Rhymes: -eː

Alternative forms

Verb

be

  1. to ask for, request someone else to do something
  2. to pray
  3. to beg, to plead with someone for help or for a favor

Conjugation

Related terms

Tarao

Alternative forms

Noun

be

  1. bean, beans

References

  • 2002, Chungkham Yashwanta Singh, Tarao Grammar

Turkish

Etymology 1

Noun

be

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter B/b.

Etymology 2

From Arabic وَاو ‎(wāw).

Etymology 3

Noun

be

  1. Letter of the Arabic alphabet: ب

See also

Tzotzil

Pronunciation

  • (Zinacantán) IPA(key): /ɓɛ/

Noun

be

  1. road, path, way

References

Vietnamese

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

Noun

be

  1. wine flask
    Rượu ngon chẳng quản be sành.‎
    Good wine does not mind a terracotta flask.

Etymology 2

Borrowing from French beige.

Adjective

be

  1. beige
    chiếc áo mưa màu be — a beige raincoat

Etymology 3

Verb

be

  1. To build a mud embankment with one's hands.
  2. To prop up the lip of a sack while topping off the sack, to ensure a more generous quantity.
    lấy tay be miệng đấu khi đong đỗ — to surround the top of a measure with one's hands while measuring beans
    Đong bình thường, không được be đâu đấy. — Measure it out normally; don't prop up the lip of the sack.

Etymology 4

Verb

be

  1. To hug a boundary or riverbank.
    Thuyền be theo bờ sông.‎
    The boat hugged the riverbank.

Etymology 5

Onomatopoeic

Interjection

be ‎(𠻻, 𠾦)

  1. (onomatopoeia) bleat; baa
Related terms

References

"be" in Hồ Ngọc Đức, Free Vietnamese Dictionary Project (details)

West Makian

Noun

be

  1. water

References

  • C. L. Voorhoeve, The Makian Languages and Their Neighbours (1982)

Etymology

From Middle English been ‎(“to be”). The various forms have three separate origins, which were mixed together at various times in the history of English.

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /biː/
  • (US) IPA(key): /bi/
  • Rhymes: -iː
  • Homophones: b, bee, Bea

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