misbefall

M3I1S1B3E1F4A1L1L1

verb

Of an event, to happen unfortunately to (a person).

OriginEnglish befall ← Middle English mys- ← Old English mis- →
Scrabble 16
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Meanings

verbmisbefall (third-person singular simple present misbefalls, present participle misbefalling, simple past misbefell, past participle misbefallen)

present singular third person misbefalls · participle present misbefalling · past misbefell · participle past misbefallen

  1. obsoletetransitiveOf an event, to happen unfortunately to (a person).
  2. intransitiveobsoleteOf an event, to happen unfortunately.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*mey-?
  2. Proto-Indo-European*meyth₂-
  3. Proto-Germanic*missaz
  4. Proto-Germanic*missa-
  5. Proto-West Germanic*missa-
  6. Old Englishmis-
  7. Middle Englishmys-
  8. Englishmis-
  9. Englishbefall
  10. Englishmisbefall

From mis- + befall.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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