bestride

[bih-strahyd]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR bestride ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), be·strode or be·strid, be·strid·den or be·strid, be·strid·ing.

to get or be astride of; have or place the legs on both sides of.

to step over or across with long strides.

to stand or tower over; dominate.

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. 2019

Related Words for bestride

escalate, rise, soar, arise, scale, ascend, back, up, lift, vault, tower, escalade, stride, mount, hedge, sprawl, overlook, survey, overtop, overlie

Examples from the Web for bestride

Historical Examples of bestride

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.
The History of Chivalry, Volume II (of 2)
Charles Mills
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.
The Adventures of Sir Launcelot Greaves
Tobias Smollett
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)

to have or put a leg on either side of

to extend across; span

to stride over or across

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

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