befit

[ bih-fit ]

verb (used with object)

, be·fit·ted, be·fit·ting.

1. to be proper or appropriate for; suit; fit:

   His clothes befit the occasion.

befit

/ bɪˈfɪt /

verb

1. tr to be appropriate to or suitable for

Derived Forms

• beˈfitting, adjective
• beˈfittingly, adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of befit¹

late Middle English word dating back to 1425–75; be-, fit ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of befit¹

C15: from be- + fit ¹

Example Sentences

Loose curls stand atop his head, messy enough to be neat, neat enough to befit a titan of industry.

From Slate

The gloomy aesthetic and lugubrious soundscape befit the morose timbre of the material as Nelson’s maudlin narrator reels off tidbits about her favorite color — referencing Derek Jarman, Joni Mitchell and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe — while intermittently brooding over her ex-partner, whom she addresses in wistful and reproachful tones, and recounting the struggles of a close friend who was paralyzed in an accident.

From New York Times

There’s enough organic weirdness to this story to make these flourishes befit the content; for instance, glimpses of a sane-looking Jeanine Pirro dating from when she was Durst’s nemesis are mindblowing by themselves, albeit markedly less so than the fact that this series came to exist in the first place.

From Salon

The temple was built over a razed mosque, and most political opposition leaders are boycotting the temple’s opening, saying it doesn’t befit a secular India.

From Seattle Times

The Richard Hugo House was born 25 years ago in a creaky Victorian house on Capitol Hill — humble beginnings that befit its namesake, the celebrated poet who came from a working-class background.

From Seattle Times