Bestir
verb ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 To put into brisk or vigorous action; to move with life and vigor. transitive
"Notwithstanding all the various temptations to bad temper, pride, greediness, adultery and so forth, the enemy really has but one temptation, and that is, to bestir the saints."
- 2 become active wordnet
- 3 To make active; to rouse oneself. reflexive
"Like the knocking at the door in Macbeth, or the cry of the watchman in the Tour de Nesle, they show that the horrible cæsura is over and the nightmares have fled away, because the day is breaking and the ordinary life of men is beginning to bestir itself among the streets."
Example
More examples"Notwithstanding all the various temptations to bad temper, pride, greediness, adultery and so forth, the enemy really has but one temptation, and that is, to bestir the saints."
Etymology
From Middle English bestyrien, bestirien, from Old English bestyrian (“to heap up, pile up”), equivalent to be- + stir.
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.