befriend
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of befriend
Explanation
There are many ways to make someone your friend. You can offer assistance with a project, or provide comfort at a time of loss. Perhaps the easiest way to befriend someone, however, is just to smile and say "hi." The prefix "be-" is from Old English, and has several meanings. In befriend, the meaning is "cause to be," so to befriend someone is to cause him or her to be your friend. Mahatma Gandhi once said, “It is easy enough to be friendly to one's friends. But to befriend the one who regards himself as your enemy is the quintessence of true religion. The other is mere business.”
Vocabulary lists containing befriend
Harry Belafonte (1927–2023) Tribute List
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"Sordid" and "Blatant" Attacks: Ten Words in the News You Need to Know
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Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village
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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.
Hatton had unsuccessfully tried to befriend the old place on nine previous visits and, after starting with a two-over par 74 on Thursday, finally managed to ingratiate himself on Friday.
From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026
In a similar leap, Jimmy and Alice forgive and befriend Goldstein’s Louis, the man who crashed his car into Tia’s and killed her.
From Salon • Feb. 7, 2026
Dr. Kelson is so lonely that he’s begun to befriend one of those spine-ripping alphas, whom he calls Samson.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 15, 2026
He also suggested that library security befriend and train nearby retailers to report any suspicious activity, especially involving art.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 12, 2025
I forced myself to befriend other students, clumsily introducing myself again and again until I had a small circle of friends.
From "Educated" by Tara Westover
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.
