*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of beme

Borrowed from Middle English beme, from Old English bēme, bȳme, bīeme (“wooden trumpet; tablet, billet”), from Proto-West Germanic *baumijā (“wooden instrument or utensil”), from Proto-Germanic *baumaz (“tree, lumber, be

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In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
noun

A mediaeval trumpet, usually used in hunting or warfare.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Borrowed from Middle English beme, from Old English bēme, bȳme, bīeme (“wooden trumpet; tablet, billet”), from Proto-West Germanic *baumijā (“wooden instrument or utensil”), from Proto-Germanic *baumaz (“tree, lumber, beam, wood”). Related to beam.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Borrowed-form mentionbemeenm
  • Derivation mentionbēmeang
  • Derivation mention*baumijāgmw-pro · wooden instrument or utensil
  • Derivation mention*bagmazgem-pro · tree, lumber, beam, wood
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "bor+",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "beme"
      },
      "expansion": "Borrowed from Middle English beme"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "bēme"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English bēme"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*baumijā",
        "t": "wooden instrument or utensil"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *baumijā (“wooden instrument or utensil”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*bagmaz",
        "4": "*baumaz",
        "t": "tree, lumber, beam, wood"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *baumaz (“tree, lumber, beam, wood”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "beme",
      "beme#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "bēme",
      "beme#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "bȳme",
      "byme#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "bīeme",
      "bieme#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*baumijā",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/baumijā"
    ],
    [
      "*baumaz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/bagmaz"
    ],
    [
      "beam",
      "beam#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A mediaeval trumpet, usually used in hunting or warfare."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "historical"
      ],
      "recordId": "5dec69023d1f882142bd81e7387c5c3b960ad7e067ac0cf93d3ee6b9017a70e6",
      "rawRecordSha256": "8b3c98bda50174630aaec140a1e1b90fb9f3b7f775df8e3f1717f61bd42b6cc5",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 3224833
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for beme →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-YmVtZQ