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befit

[bih-fit]
See more synonyms for befit on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object), be·fit·ted, be·fit·ting.
  1. to be proper or appropriate for; suit; fit: His clothes befit the occasion.
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Origin of befit

late Middle English word dating back to 1425–75; see origin at be-, fit1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for befit

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • Here be lilies in the cheeks, and not roses such as befit a bonny bride.

  • But, as he thought of it, there seemed to be a romance about such a step which would not befit him.

    Miss Mackenzie

    Anthony Trollope

  • You are our paid servant, and such a remark does not befit you.

    The Golden Face

    William Le Queux

  • But so much worldly education does not befit a woman or improve her.

  • Should a Senator be held to have lived as did not befit a Senator, a Censor could depose him.

    The Life of Cicero

    Anthony Trollope

British Dictionary definitions for befit

befit

verb -fits, -fitting or -fitted
  1. (tr) to be appropriate to or suitable for
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Derived Formsbefitting, adjectivebefittingly, adverb

Word Origin

C15: from be- + fit 1
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for befit

v.

mid-15c., from be- + fit (v.). Related: Befitted; befitting.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper