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Synonyms

befall

American  
[bih-fawl] / bɪˈfɔl /

verb (used without object)

befell, befallen, befalling

  1. to happen or occur.

    Synonyms:
    chance, materialize, betide, ensue, bechance

  2. Archaic. to come, as by right.

verb (used with object)

befell, befallen, befalling

  1. to happen to, especially by chance or fate.

befall British  
/ bɪˈfɔːl /

verb

  1. (intr) to take place; come to pass

  2. (tr) to happen to

  3. to be due, as by right

"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

Etymology

Origin of befall

before 900; Middle English befallen, Old English befeallan. See be-, fall (v.)

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.