bestowed

American  

[bih-stohd] / bɪˈstoʊd /

adjective

1. presented as a gift or privilege; given or conferred.

   As the official addressed them, some members of the audience shouted with joy over their newly bestowed citizenship.

2. Archaic. applied; put to some use.

   If I regarded the present discussion concerning baptism as only about mere mode or form, I should think my time and labor poorly bestowed.

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verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of bestow.

Other Word Forms

• unbestowed adjective
• well-bestowed adjective

Etymology

Origin of bestowed

bestow ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

The couple will still be on a high after all the festivities and luxuriating in the afterglow of the love — and cash — bestowed upon them.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 13, 2026

That flow ultimately earned him the name Slick Rick, bestowed by legendary hip-hop producer Doug E Fresh, who spotted him at an open mic night and invited him to join his Get Fresh Crew.

From BBC • Mar. 25, 2026

In the run-up to the Academy Awards, Madigan was not the overarching favorite, but wins at the Critics Choice Awards and the Actor Awards bestowed by the Screen Actors Guild snowballed into Oscars success.

From Barron's • Mar. 15, 2026

The WGA bestowed the Walter Bernstein Award on Colbert, meant to honor artists with a “willingness to confront social injustice in the face of adversity.”

From Salon • Mar. 9, 2026

All this would be fine—an embarrassment of riches, to be sure; a tad too many treasures to be bestowed on a single human, certainly—if he were nice.

From "The Sun Is Also a Star" by Nicola Yoon