behest

noun

be·​hest bi-ˈhest 

bē-

1

: an authoritative order : command

The meeting was called at the senator's behest.

2

: an urgent prompting

At the behest of her friends, she read the poem aloud.

Did you know?

Behest is an ancient word: it is almost a thousand years old. It was formed from the prefix be- and the verb hātan ("to command" or "to promise"), and its Old English ancestor was used exclusively in the sense of "promise," a now-obsolete meaning that continued on in Middle English especially in the phrase "the land of behest." The "command" meaning of behest is also ancient but it's still in good use, typically referring to an authoritative order. Behest is now also used with a less weighty meaning; it can refer to an urgent prompting, as in "a repeat performance at the behest of the troupe's fans."

Synonyms

• charge
• command
• commandment
• decree
• dictate
• direction
• directive
• do
• edict
• imperative
• injunction
• instruction
• order
• word

Examples of behest in a Sentence

I only made the change at the author's behest.

Recent Examples on the Web

According to LAist, video footage showed drivers on the Pacific Coast Highway fleeing their cars to the ocean, at the behest of officers. —Russell Lewis, NPR, 8 Jan. 2025

Several opinion editors stepped down from the Post's editorial board last year after the paper's endorsement of Vice President Harris for president was spiked at the 11th hour at the behest of owner Jeff Bezos. —Sara Fischer, Axios, 7 Jan. 2025

Chae takes the opportunity of Season 2, however, to mature the series’ child nursery in The Bad Place aesthetic to showcase the Masked Guards operating the games at the behest of the Front Man (Lee Byung-hun) and finds ways for the games to bleed into Gi-hun’s life in Seoul, too. —Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 28 Dec. 2024

At the behest of PanAm Airlines at the dawn of the jet-set era, Rolex developed a 24-hour hand with which their pilots could track a second time zone against the now iconic red and blue bicolor bezel. —Blake Buettner, Robb Report, 27 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, promise, command, from Old English behǣs promise, from behātan to promise, from be- + hātan to command, promise — more at hight

First Known Use

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing behest

• at someone's behest
• at the behest of someone

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Kids Definition

behest

noun

be·​hest bi-ˈhest 

: order entry 2 sense 5b, command

built monuments at their ruler's behest