bespeak

[ bih-speek ]
See synonyms for: bespeakbespoke on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object),be·spoke or (Archaic) be·spake; be·spo·ken or be·spoke; be·speak·ing.
  1. to ask for in advance: to bespeak the reader's patience.

  2. to reserve beforehand; engage in advance; make arrangements for: to bespeak a seat in a theater.

  1. Literary. to speak to; address.

  2. to show; indicate: This bespeaks a kindly heart.

  3. Obsolete. to foretell; forebode.

Origin of bespeak

1
before 900; Middle English bespeken,Old English besprecan.See be-, speak

Words Nearby bespeak

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use bespeak in a sentence

  • The broad shoulders and ample waist bespeak the splendid strength of the goddess.

    Greek Sculpture | Estelle M. Hurll
  • Many of the pictures now displayed in exhibitions bespeak a close intimacy between the painters and the fishermen.

    The Cornwall Coast | Arthur L. Salmon
  • The remains, like those around St. Piran's, bespeak a somewhat dense population.

    The Cornwall Coast | Arthur L. Salmon
  • The wonderful claims these people bespeak for them are not to be believed by any intelligent man.

  • She had now, however, bought sufficient experience to bespeak a chaise against his return.

    Camilla | Fanny Burney

British Dictionary definitions for bespeak

bespeak

/ (bɪˈspiːk) /


verb-speaks, -speaking, -spoke, -spoken or -spoke (tr)
  1. to engage, request, or ask for in advance

  2. to indicate or suggest: this act bespeaks kindness

  1. poetic to speak to; address

  2. archaic to foretell

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