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bestride

[bih-strahyd]
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verb (used with object), be·strode or be·strid, be·strid·den or be·strid, be·strid·ing.
  1. to get or be astride of; have or place the legs on both sides of.
  2. to step over or across with long strides.
  3. to stand or tower over; dominate.
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Origin of bestride

before 1000; Middle English bestriden, Old English bestrīdan. See be-, stride
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for bestride

Historical Examples

  • Sheer audacity is at times the surest steed a man can bestride.

    To Have and To Hold

    Mary Johnston

  • After the death of his master no one was permitted to bestride that good horse.

  • These lads are as lithe and lean as the ponies they bestride.

    The Little Lady of Lagunitas

    Richard Henry Savage

  • Mr. Clarke had the honour to bestride the loins of Bronzomarte.

  • He seemed to bestride it as we could imagine Alexander bestriding his Bucephalus.

    Here and There in London

    J. Ewing Ritchie

British Dictionary definitions for bestride

bestride

verb -strides, -striding or -strode or archaic -strid, -stridden or archaic -strid (tr)
  1. to have or put a leg on either side of
  2. to extend across; span
  3. to stride over or across
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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

Word Origin and History for bestride

v.

Old English bestridan "to bestride, mount," from be- + stridan "to stride" (see stride). Cf. Middle Dutch bestryden.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper