be

1 of 5

verb

ˈbē 

past tense first- and third-person singular was ˈwəz 

ˈwäz

; past tense second-person singular were ˈwər  ; past tense plural were; past subjunctive were; past participle been ˈbin  ˈben 

chiefly British

ˈbēn  ; present participle being ˈbē(-i)ŋ  ; present tense first-person singular am

əm,

ˈam  ; present tense second-person singular are ˈär 

ər

; present tense third-person singular is ˈiz 

əz

; present tense plural are; present subjunctive be

intransitive verb

1

a

: to equal in meaning : have the same connotation as : symbolize

January is the first month.

let x be 10

b

: to have identity with : to constitute the same idea or object as

The first person I met was my brother.

c

: to constitute the same class as

These three books are the authoritative works on the president's life.

d

: to have a specified qualification or characterization

The leaves are green.

e

: to belong to the class of

The fish is a trout.

Keeping this room clean is your responsibility.

Note: In senses 1a through 1e, be functions as a simple copula or linking verb.

2

a

: to have an objective existence : have reality or actuality : live

I think, therefore I am.

b

: to have, maintain, or occupy a place, situation, or position

The book is on the table.

c

: to remain unmolested, undisturbed, or uninterrupted

—used only in the infinitive form

Let him be.

d

: to take place : occur

The concert was last night.

e

: to come or go

has already been and gone

has never been to the circus

f

archaic : belong, befall

… to thine and Albany's issue be this perpetual.

—William Shakespeare

auxiliary verb

1

—used as an auxiliary (see auxiliary entry 2 sense 3) with the past participle of transitive verbs to form the passive voice

The money was found.

The house is being built.

2

—used as the auxiliary of the present participle in progressive tenses expressing continuous action

He is reading.

I have been sleeping.

3

—used with the past participle of some intransitive verbs as an auxiliary forming archaic perfect tenses

… Christ is risen from the dead …

—1 Corinthians 15:20 (Douay Version)

4

—used with to + infinitive to express futurity, arrangement in advance, or obligation

I am to interview him today.

She was to become famous.

5

or less commonly bes

ˈbēz 

or be's

—used in the uninflected form be or sometimes the form bes or be's in African American English and to varying degrees in some other varieties of English to indicate that an action or state is habitual or frequent

I be singing in the shower.

… they be bothering you while you try and do your work. …

—unidentified African American English speaker, quoted in The Corpus of Regional African American Language

It bes that way.

We learned to slide out of one language and into another without being conscious of the effort. At school, in a given situation, we might respond with "That's not unusual." But in the street, meeting the same situation, we easily said "It be's like that sometimes."

—Maya Angelou

Note: In linguistics, this use is referred to as aspectual be, habitual be, or invariant be. It usually occurs in the uninflected form be, as in the first two examples above; however, in African American English in particular, it sometimes takes the form bes or be's.

compare BEEN

Be

2 of 5

symbol

beryllium

Bé

3 of 5

abbreviation (1)

Baumé

BE

4 of 5

abbreviation (2)

1

bachelor of education

2

bachelor of engineering

3

bill of exchange

4

Black English

5

British English

be-

5 of 5

prefix

1

: on : around : over

besmear

2

: to a great or greater degree : thoroughly

befuddle

3

: excessively : ostentatiously

—in intensive verbs formed from simple verbs

bedeck

and in adjectives based on adjectives ending in -ed

beribboned

4

: about : to : at : upon : against : across

bestride

5

: make : cause to be : treat as

belittle

befriend

6

: call or dub especially excessively

bedoctor

7

: affect, afflict, treat, provide, or cover with especially excessively

bedevil

befog

Synonyms

Verb

• breathe
• exist
• live
• subsist

Examples of be in a Sentence

Verb

stories that begin with the familiar line “once upon a time there was a beautiful maiden”

we'll be there waiting for you

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Our vision is simply to be the most excellent Professional Publisher there is. —Kyle J. Russell, USA TODAY, 13 Dec. 2024

There were already so many iconic BTS photos from The Virgin Suicides circulating on the internet. —Keaton Bell, Vogue, 12 Dec. 2024

There were some negative headlines coming out before the US market open, including Biden’s raising of Chinese solar tariffs and increasing semiconductor export controls. —Brendan Ahern, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024

There is one memory of a reporting trip to Damascus that still haunts me. —Ivan Watson, CNN, 12 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Old English bēon; akin to Old High German bim am, Latin fui I have been, futurus about to be, fieri to become, be done, Greek phynai to be born, be by nature, phyein to produce

Prefix

Middle English, from Old English bi-, be-; akin to Old English bī by, near — more at by

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Phrases Containing be

• a force to be reckoned with
• a man/woman/person to be reckoned with
• aspectual be
• a thing devoutly to be wished
• be a devil
• be a great one for
• be-all and end-all
• be any good
• be apprenticed to
• be at pains
• be back
• be (back) in the swing of things
• be/become one's own man
• be best friends with
• be bunkered
• be bursting
• be bursting at the seams
• (be) careful what you wish for
• be concentrated
• be conditioned on/upon
• be cooking
• be correlated with
• be curtains for
• be cut up about
• be damned
• be deeply invested in
• be descended from
• be done with
• be done with it
• be/fall prey to
• be friends with
• be/get carried away
• be/get in someone's face
• be/get togged up/out
• beggars can't be choosers
• be given one's card
• be going
• be going to
• be great at
• be had
• be hard/tough to beat
• be hearing things
• be honest/frank
• be hurting
• be in for a (big/real) surprise
• be (in) for the high jump
• be in love
• be in receipt of
• be into (someone) for
• be in with a shout
• be kind enough
• be laughing
• be left to one's own devices
• be/lie at the bottom of
• be/live in each other's pockets
• be living on borrowed time
• be made of sterner/tougher stuff
• be/make so bold
• be/mean/spell curtains for
• be my guest
• be mysterious
• be no respecter of persons
• be not a patch on
• be off
• be of good cheer
• be of service
• be of the opinion
• be oneself
• be one's own boss
• be one's usual self
• be on/have a short fuse
• be on intimate terms
• be on one's merry way
• be on the lookout for
• be out of a job
• be paid up
• be possessed of
• be privileged
• be puffed (up) with pride
• be put to death
• be quick on the draw
• be rained off
• be rained out
• be reborn
• be reincarnated
• be represented
• be resigned to
• be riding for a fall
• be riding high
• be rid of
• be rough on (someone)
• be run/rushed off one's feet
• be secure in the belief/knowledge
• be sick
• be sickening for
• be so kind
• be sold out
• (be) spoiling for
• be spoken for
• be starving/starved
• be/stay holed up
• be struck by
• be struck on
• be supposed to
• be sure
• be sweet on
• be that as it may
• be the death of
• be toast
• be to do with
• be tough on
• be tuned in
• be under the impression
• be upstanding
• be widowed
• be wild about
• be without substance
• be witness to
• boys will be boys
• bride-to-be
• can be forgiven
• cannot be helped
• cannot be overemphasized
• cannot be overstated
• can't be overstressed
• can't be serious
• chance would be a fine thing
• children should be seen and not heard
• couldn't be happier
• couldn't be worse/better
• cracked up to be
• cut out to do/be
• far be it from
• fit to be tied
• force to be reckoned with
• get/be caught in a storm
• get/be shot of
• glory be
• going to be sick
• habitual be
• how will that be
• how would it be
• if looks could kill, I'd be dead right now
• if need be
• I'll be bound
• I'll be damned
• I'll be danged
• I'll be darned
• I'll be hanged
• I'll be seeing you
• invariant be
• is nowhere to be found
• It has to be said
• (it's) better (to be) safe than sorry
• it should be remembered
• leave a great deal to be desired
• leave a lot to be desired
• leave much to be desired
• leave nothing to be desired
• leave (someone or something) be
• let bygones be bygones
• let it be known
• let's be honest
• let (someone or something) be
• looks can be deceiving/deceptive
• meant to be
• meant to (be/do something)
• not have to be that way
• nothing could be farther from the truth
• nothing could be further from someone's mind
• nothing could be further from the truth
• not to be missed
• not to be sniffed at
• nowhere to be found
• praise be
• praise be to God
• prove (to be) useful
• remain to be seen
• see and be seen
• so be it
• stand up and be counted
• that'll be the day
• the be-all and end-all
• the best is yet to come/be
• the place to be
• the powers that be
• there is to be said for
• to-be
• to be congratulated
• to be delivered of
• to be exact
• to be precise
• to be sure
• too good to be true
• truth be told
• truth be told/known
• turn out to be (something)
• whatever the case (may be)
• what good would that do/be?
• what it used to be
• where can (someone) (possibly) be
• wherever that may be
• will be the death of
• would-be
• would you be good enough
• would you be so good
• you had to be there
• you/he/she must be joking

Kids Definition

be

1 of 2 verb

(ˈ)bē 

past 1st & 3rd singular was (ˈ)wəz 

ˈwäz

; 2nd singular were (ˈ)wər  ; plural were; past subjunctive were; past participle been (ˈ)bin 

 chiefly British  (ˈ)bēn

; present participle being ˈbē-iŋ  ; present 1st singular am əm 

(ˈ)am

; 2nd singular are ər 

(ˈ)är

; 3rd singular is (ˈ)iz 

əz

; plural are; present subjunctive be

1

a

: to have the same meaning as : serve as a sign for

January is the first month

let x be 10

b

: to have identity with

the first person I met was my brother

she is my mother

c

: to have the quality or character of

the leaves are green

d

: to belong to the class of

the fish is a trout

apes are mammals

2

a

: exist sense 1, live

I think, therefore I am

there once was a knight

b

: to occupy a place, situation, or position

the book is on the table

I was sick

c

: to remain undisturbed or uninterrupted

—used only in infinitive form

let it be

d

: to take place : occur

the concert was last night

3

—used with the past participle of transitive verbs to form the passive auxiliary

the money was found

the house is being built

4

—used with the present participle to express continuous action

they are studying

I have been sleeping

5

—used with the infinitive with to to express the future or something one must do

she was to become famous

I am to leave today

be-

2 of 2 prefix

1

: on : around : over

besmear

2

: provide with or cover with : dress up with

bejewel

bewhiskered

3

: about : to : upon

bemoan

4

: make : cause to be

belittle

befriend

Etymology

Prefix

Old English be-, bi- "on, over"

Medical Definition

Bé

1 of 3 abbreviation

Baumé

Be

2 of 3 symbol

beryllium

BE

3 of 3 abbreviation

1

barium enema

2

below elbow

3

board-eligible