befangen

Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word befangen. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word befangen, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say befangen in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word befangen you have here. The definition of the word befangen will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition ofbefangen, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.

German

Pronunciation

  • Audio:(file)

Etymology 1

From Middle High German bevāhen, from Old High German bifāhan, from Proto-West Germanic *bifą̄han. Equivalent to be- +‎ fangen. The homonymic past participle is continued as adjective.

Verb

befangen (class 7 strong, third-person singular present befängt, past tense befing, past participle befangen, auxiliary haben)

  1. (obsolete, literally and figuratively) to apprehend, to seize, to grasp, to conceive
  2. (obsolete) to encompass, to surround
Conjugation

Etymology 2

From Middle High German bevangen, from Old High German bifangan, from Proto-West Germanic *bifangan.

Adjective

befangen (strong nominative masculine singular befangener, comparative befangener, superlative am befangensten)

  1. (also law) biased, prejudiced
  2. bashful, shy, selfconscious
Declension
Derived terms

Further reading

Old English

Pronunciation

Participle

befangen

  1. past participle of befōn