PERMANENT SOURCE RECORD
ALL SOURCES ↗BIBLIOGRAPHIC IDENTITYmw-be-prefix
SOURCE
RECORD.
One work. Every claim that depends on it. No citation without a consequence you can inspect.
4 PUBLIC LINKS INTO THE GRAPH.
This count excludes duplicate dossier-path citations. Open the claims below to see exactly how the source is used.
historical dictionarymw-be-prefix
Be- — Prefix Definition and Word History
- AUTHOR / EDITOR
- Merriam-Webster Editors
- YEAR
- 2026
- PUBLISHER
- Merriam-Webster
- DOI
- Not recorded
- SOURCE TYPE
- historical dictionary
- EXTERNAL RECORD
- OPEN ORIGINAL ↗
011
CONTRARIAN TRUTH CLAIMS
RANKED REVEALS THAT CITE THIS SOURCE
RANK 101GRADE Acontext
To betroth is to bind by one’s truth or troth.
Middle English bitrouthen visibly combines bi-/be- with trouth, the historical fidelity noun before modern truth and troth were cleanly separated.
*deru-
*deru- → *treuwaz → *treuwithō → trēowþ → trouth → bitrouthen → betroth
be- prefix etymologyIndependently supplies the prefix history.
betroth dossier ↗truth record ↗86UNVEILING
021
SCHOLARLY DISAGREEMENT
DISPUTE POSITIONS THAT CITE THIS SOURCE
resolvedsupportsestablished
Is the be- in betroth the verb be?
No. It is the historical prefix bi- or be-, related to Old English bi- or be- and bī “by, near,” not the copular verb.
Etymology of be- from Old English bi-/be- and bīPublishes the historical prefix lineage.
032
CANONICAL RELATIONSHIP CLAIMS
EDGES THAT CITE THIS SOURCE
EDGE 715supportsestablished
bi-/be- → bi-/be-
Middle English → Old English · inheritance
- SOUND
- Middle English bi-/be- continues Old English bi-/be- with form and functions preserved across the period boundary.
- MEANING
- A historically locative prefix broadens across English word formations.
- SCHOLAR / EDITOR
- Merriam-Webster Editors
Etymology: Middle English from Old English bi-/be-Publishes the historical prefix continuity.
EDGE 716supportsboundary
bi-/be- → UNKNOWN
Old English → Beyond secure reconstruction · knowledge boundary
- SOUND
- No older unique form is promoted beyond the reviewed Old English prefix history.
- MEANING
- The component trail ends at the published horizon.
- SCHOLAR / EDITOR
- SET-U editorial boundary
Prefix entry endpoint and comparison with Old English bīDefines the reviewed component horizon without inventing a deeper root.
040
LEXICAL ATTESTATIONS
WITNESSES REPORTED BY THIS SOURCE
No lexical witness currently cites this source.
050
COMPARATIVE EVIDENCE
COGNATES, DESCENDANTS, AND RELATIVES
No comparative-relative record currently cites this source.
060
GEOGRAPHIC AND TEMPORAL CLAIMS
JOURNEY STAGES THAT CITE THIS SOURCE
No journey-stage claim currently cites this source.
070
NON-GENEALOGICAL CONNECTIONS
HISTORICAL CONTEXT, KEPT SEPARATE
No non-genealogical context link currently cites this source.
081
WORD-FAMILY REUSE