bestem

B3E1S1T1E1M3

verb

To stem completely; stem all about; hinder.

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Meanings

verbbestem (third-person singular simple present bestems, present participle bestemming, simple past and past participle bestemmed)

present singular third person bestems · participle present bestemming · participle past bestemmed · past bestemmed

  1. archaictransitiveTo stem completely; stem all about; hinder.

    Whence she might overglance the boundless boiling of billows, / Then she would rush to bestem the salt-plain's quivering wavelet / And from her ankles bare the dainty garment uplifting, / Spake she these words […]

    1894, Gaius Valerius Catullus, The Carmina of Caius Valerius Catullus

Origin

From be- + stem.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

bestem. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bestem

MLA

“bestem.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bestem. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bestem,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bestem.

Source: bestem on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.