behest

[ bih-hest ]

noun

1. a command or directive.

   Synonyms: mandate, dictate, decree, bidding, order

2. an earnest or strongly worded request.

behest

/ bɪˈhɛst /

noun

1. an authoritative order or earnest request

Word History and Origins

Origin of behest¹

before 1000; Middle English bihest ( e ), Old English behǣs promise. See be-, hest

Word History and Origins

Origin of behest¹

Old English behǣs , from behātan ; see be- , hest

Example Sentences

At Collins’s behest, the biosecurity board also convened several public meetings regarding gain-of-function research policy.

From Washington Post

Born in Scotland, Ross came to Pinehurst in 1900 at the behest of its founder, Bostonian soda fountain magnate James Walker Tufts.

From Washington Post

At the behest of President Xi Jinping, they have already banned the hunting, trade, and consumption of a large number of “terrestrial wild animals,” a step never fully implemented after the original SARS outbreak.

From MIT Technology Review

“The state level is where we see the most important democratic backsliding, and it’s happening at the behest of Republican state officials,” said Jake Grumbach, a political scientist at the University of Washington who studies state politics.

From FiveThirtyEight

At the behest of a friend, and as final hail Mary, Susan reached out to Pandemic of Love for help.

From Time

Jackson declined to comment on the case, saying it was at the behest of his lawyer.

From The Daily Beast

The pair were working at the behest of a human-rights organization called the Global Network for Rights and Development (GNRD).

From The Daily Beast

I explained I was in the country at the behest of the Department of State, as a kind of cultural ambassador.

From The Daily Beast

Or the time he ran and hid—at his mother's behest—during the Battle of the Blackwater.

From The Daily Beast

The following day, Magnitsky was arrested at the behest of Lt. Col. Kuznetsov.

From The Daily Beast

Miss Boutts awaited the buggy, in the tiny porch, and had obeyed Isabel's behest to look her prettiest.

From Project Gutenberg

The humbly sympathizing friend became once more the respectful servant, and hurried away to carry out his young mistress's behest.

From Project Gutenberg

I would no longer take my elephant anywhere and everywhere at the behest of the monkey, for monkeys have no judgment.

From Project Gutenberg

Peter Barrington had, however, heard enough to inform him of his sister's high behest.

From Project Gutenberg

"My going out is so irregular," said Armine, not by any means as he would have accepted a behest of Petronella's.

From Project Gutenberg