beset
Americanverb (used with object)
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besets,
present (3rd person singular)
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beset,
past participle, past
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besetting
present participle
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to attack on all sides; assail.
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to trouble greatly or grievously; to afflict with mental or physical suffering; harass: Even as he was being beset with disasters, he triumphed.
The best ideas are often beset by bureaucratic hurdles.
Even as he was being beset with disasters, he triumphed.
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to surround; hem in.
The village was beset on all sides by dense forest.
Our work will be beset with dangers.
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to set or place upon; bestud.
The gold bracelet she found was beset with jewels.
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Nautical. to surround (a vessel) by ice, so that control of the helm is lost.
verb
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(esp of dangers, temptations, or difficulties) to trouble or harass constantly
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to surround or attack from all sides
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archaic to cover with, esp with jewels
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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besetsimple
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besetssimple
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have besetperfect
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has besetperfect
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am besettingprogressive
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are besettingprogressive
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is besettingprogressive
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have been besettingperfect progressive
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has been besettingperfect progressive
Past
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besetsimple
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had besetperfect
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was besettingprogressive
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were besettingprogressive
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had been besettingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of beset
First recorded before 1000; from Middle English besetten, Old English besettan. See be-, set
Explanation
Beset means to attack from all sides — an invading army will beset a castle, or you might find yourself beset by a devastating storm. Beset also has a very different meaning: to decorate or encrust with jewels or other ornamentation. If you are attending a ball, you may choose a gown that is beset with silver sequins, just be careful that you don't end up looking like a giant disco ball.
Vocabulary lists containing beset
Beowulf
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"Still I Rise" by Maya Angelou
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Beowulf vocabulary
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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.
See Examples For:
Bass’ summer has been beset by a string of negative news.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 2, 2026
The monument had long been beset by structural failures and leaks, and Trump championed the project as part of his bid to beautify the capital city.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
The technology industry, in particular, has been beset by layoffs in recent months from companies like Amazon and Meta, with thousands losing their jobs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
The results included $280 million in losses on the VC-25B program for the presidential plane, Air Force One, which has been beset by delays and cost overruns.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
Deacon Hurd, beset, with financial woe, was no longer preaching.
From "Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy" by Gary D. Schmidt
A similar problem besets Georgia's On Replay – a generic club track with a tra-la-la chorus.
From BBC ● May 8, 2026
Researchers have now gained new insights into how that water pollution is creating air pollution that besets nearby communities.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2025
The accounts of ramming must also be seen through the panic that naturally besets humans when they encounter such enormous animals.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 28, 2023
While armed conflict besets much of the country, Beileh’s ministry and al-Shabab now compete over the most basic function of governance: to collect revenue and provide services.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 30, 2019
I have tried to depict the sort of temptation that besets most artists at this stage of their career: the temptation to abandon the struggle for the sake of a purely sensual existence.
From Goblins and Pagodas by Fletcher, John Gould
Both mother and daughter reflect on the troubles besetting their own family, as the mother tries to write a novel.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2026
But even jaded readers will be startled by the scope of the self-organizing tyranny besetting the book world.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 28, 2026
The findings suggest kids have been caught in the crossfire of simultaneous immigration and housing crises besetting the city.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 1, 2023
He also followed up on prior deals to provide arms and training to regional powers while adroitly sidestepping the deadly frictions currently besetting the Middle East.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 26, 2023
My terror, as I lay there, of falling ill, and being unfitted for to-morrow, was so besetting, that I wonder it did not disable me of itself.
From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
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.
