bereave
Americanverb (used with object)
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bereaves,
present (3rd person singular)
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bereaved,
past participle, past
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bereft,
past participle
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bereaving
present participle
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to deprive and make desolate, especially by death (usually followed byof ).
Illness bereaved them of their mother.
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to deprive ruthlessly or by force (usually followed byof ).
The war bereaved them of their home.
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Obsolete. to take away by violence.
verb
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(usually foll by of) to deprive (of) something or someone valued, esp through death
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obsolete to remove by force
Usage
What does bereave mean? To bereave means to take away and leave devastated. Death bereaves us of our loved ones. Bereave can also mean to deprive by force, as in War has bereaved them of their homes. Those who are devastated by the loss of loved ones can be described as bereaved or bereft. These words can also apply to those who have suffered other serious losses. Bereave is most often used in the context of death. The noun form of bereave is bereavement, referring to a period of mourning or or state of intense grief, especially following the death of a loved one. Bereavement can also be used more generally to mean the state of having lost something very dear. Example: Violence has bereaved us of yet another young person.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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bereavesimple
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bereavessimple
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have bereavedperfect
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have bereftperfect
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has bereavedperfect
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has bereftperfect
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am bereavingprogressive
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are bereavingprogressive
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is bereavingprogressive
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have been bereavingperfect progressive
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has been bereavingperfect progressive
Past
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bereavedsimple
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had bereavedperfect
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had bereftperfect
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was bereavingprogressive
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were bereavingprogressive
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had been bereavingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of bereave
First recorded before 900; Middle English bereven, Old English berēafian; cognate with Dutch berooven, German berauben, Gothic biraubōn; equivalent to be- + reave 1
Explanation
The verb bereave is used when death takes someone away from you, depriving you of their presence. Overfeeding might bereave you of beloved goldfish. Think of bereave as an old-fashioned verb that's much more likely to show up in the adjective bereaved these days. A year after you've been bereaved by the loss of your childhood dog, you may feel ready to think about a new puppy. This word comes from the Old English bereafian, "to take by violence, seize, or rob," which pretty much sums up how it feels to be bereaved.
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.
See Examples For:
Half of our crew were locals, so we offered them to take time off to bereave should they choose to.
From Salon ● May 12, 2023
Yet, when discretion doth bereave The plaints that they should utter,Then thy discretion may perceive That silence is a suitor.
From The Guardian ● Feb. 10, 2012
Life after college can feel like a desperate and depressing limbo where recent grads bereave the loss of carefree times when they aren’t scouring Craigslist for employment.
From Washington Post
"Luther never intended to bereave the church of her mystery," says one Sammlung theologian.
From Time Magazine Archive
The world may of all things bereave me, Its thorns may assail and aggrieve me, The foe may great anguish engender: My rose I will never surrender.
From Hymns and Hymnwriters of Denmark by J. C. (Jens Christian) Aaberg
“It utterly bereaves me to pass on the news that I have been advised by my medical team here in the UK to cancel my upcoming USA book tour,” Moore wrote on Instagram.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2023
Queen Elizabeth II will be seated alone as she bereaves the death of her husband of 73 years, Prince Philip, at his funeral on Saturday.
From Fox News ● Apr. 16, 2021
But a separation from our place, the close of a particular career of duty, shuts the book, bereaves us of this hope, and leaves us only to lament how little has been done.
From Transcendentalism in New England A History by Octavius Brooks Frothingham
He contends that when one is not blamable for some calamity which bereaves him or strips him of his possessions, grief is unmanly, regret inexcusable.
From Claim Number One by George W. (George Washington) Ogden
Controls them and subdues, transmutes, bereaves Of their bad influence, and their good receives.
From Familiar Quotations A Collection of Passages, Phrases, and Proverbs Traced to Their Sources in Ancient and Modern Literature by John Bartlett
Grenfell United, a bereaved families and survivors group, has previously criticised the time frame for prosecutions.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
No one will give speeches at the ceremony, while bereaved family members will read out the names of all of those killed and a bell rung to mark major moments during the attack.
From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026
She said: "Too often these cases are dependent upon bereaved families campaigning at a time when they are least prepared to do so, and it is an outstanding public service that they perform."
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
The bereaved received rap demos that Elsesser’s brother and his friends had recorded.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026
There was nobody to do it except Uncle O. V., and he was the bereaved too.
From "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison
Equally shattering is a cue surging through a long scene bereft of dialogue, where Alex discovers a tampered-with wine bottle and realizes that he is married to a spy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
But warmer oceans are also often bereft of the high-energy prey these juvenile salmon need for rapid growth when they reach the saltwater.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
Last week’s men’s tournament at London’s Queen’s Club, an important warm-up for Wimbledon, was bereft of top-10 players.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 21, 2026
It might be harsh to say England missed Stokes' captaincy, because the short-ball plan is a favourite of his, but the hosts certainly looked bereft of leaders, discipline and inspiration.
From BBC ● Jun. 18, 2026
Though Ser Ronnet was indeed off north somewhere with Jaime Lannister, Griffin’s Roost was not quite bereft of griffins.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
Even those who are still alive are forced to spend parts of their existence inadvertently bereaving the death of a life they were promised.
From Salon ● Jun. 7, 2025
Culkin, 39, pressed that the death of Dakota – whose nickname was Cody – hit everyone in their family differently and they all were "torn up inside" while bereaving the accident.
From Fox News ● Oct. 6, 2021
As for Frank, in 40a way it would be a good thing for him if he could secure Kathryn before the news came bereaving him of the baronetcy.
From Where the Path Breaks by Charles de Créspigny
All our joys are but toys! idle thoughts deceiving: None have power, of an hour, in their lives bereaving.
From A History of Elizabethan Literature by George Saintsbury
Adversities bereaving man's avails, They fly like feathers dallying in the wind: They rise like bubbles in a stormy rain, Swelling in words, and flying faith and deeds.
From A Select Collection of Old English Plays, Volume 7 by Various
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.
