beget
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
-
to father
-
to cause or create
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
have begotperfect
-
has begottenperfect 3rd person singular
-
have begottenperfect
-
has begotperfect 3rd person singular
-
are begettingprogressive
-
is begettingprogressive 3rd person singular
-
have been begettingperfect progressive
-
begettingparticiple
-
has been begettingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
-
begetssingular 3rd person
-
am begettingprogressive 1st person singular
Past
-
had begottenperfect
-
had begotperfect
-
were begettingprogressive plural
-
begotparticiple
-
begottenparticiple
-
begatsimple
-
was begettingprogressive singular
-
had been begettingperfect progressive
-
begotsimple
Future
Etymology
Origin of beget
First recorded before 1000; Middle English begeten ( see be-, get); replacing Middle English biyeten, Old English begetan; cognate with Gothic bigitan, Old High German bigezzan
Explanation
To beget means to generate something, usually children, and it can be used to refer to the role of either a mother or a father. If we analyze the word beget, we get the prefix be-, which tends to intensify the meaning of the following verb, and get, which means to cause something to enter one's possession. The word is usually used to refer to having children, although it can be used to refer to anything that generates something else — for example, an inspiration can beget a brilliant idea.
Vocabulary lists containing beget
Motherlode: A Mother's Day Lexicon
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Words for Father's Day: What Fathers Do
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Words from Shakespearean Insults
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Baelor of all people knows the smallfolk would react poorly to their beloved prince letting injustice beget more injustice.
From Salon • Feb. 25, 2026
The disaster beget $53 billion in losses, with insurers covering around $40 billion.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 13, 2026
These downturns would create cracks in anyone’s self-esteem, but for people with NPD, the newly created cognitive dissonance between their self-image and the setback can beget a personality crisis.
From Slate • Jul. 23, 2025
Rather than allow mistake to beget mistake, as they so often did across the autumn, Ireland moved slowly through the gears before finally reaching cruising speed.
From BBC • Feb. 2, 2025
Rams wrapped in theremo- gene beget no lambs.
From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
