beest

From Middle English bēst, biest, beost, bist, from Old English bist; equivalent to be +‎ -est. Compare West Frisian bist, German bist.

• bist

beest

1. (archaic) second-person singular present indicative or subjunctive of be
   • 1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene ii]:

     Stephano! if thou beest Stephano, touch me, and speake to me: for I am Trinculo; be not afeard, thy good friend Trinculo.

   • a. 1631 (date written), J[ohn] Donne, “The Baite”, in Poems, […] with Elegies on the Authors Death, London: […] M[iles] F[lesher] for Iohn Marriot, […], published 1633, →OCLC:

     If thou, to be so seene, beest loath, / By Sunne, or Moone, thou darknest both […].

From Middle English beest. See beestings.

beest (plural beests)

1. beestings, colostrum

• Beets, Beste, beets, beset, tsebe

From Middle Dutch beeste, from beste, from Old French beste, from Latin bēstia.

• IPA^(key): /beːst/

• Audio:

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• Hyphenation: beest
• Rhymes: -eːst
• Homophone: Beesd

beest n (plural beesten, diminutive beestje n or beessie n)

1. An animal, a beast.

   Er zit een beestje in m'n soep. ― There is a bug in my soup.

2. An animal kept as livestock, a head.
3. (figurative) A cruel, wild, uncivilised, uninhibited or brutal person.

   De folteraars van de grenspolitie waren sadistische beesten. ― The torturers of the border police were sadistic beasts.

   Ze is een beest. ― She's a beast in bed.

• Beest has a somewhat negative (or at least savage) connotation, whereas dier is neutral. However, the diminutives are often affectionate.
• In compounds, beest can have the meaning “someone who enjoys an activity”; compare English animal in party animal and also beast.

• Afrikaans: bees
• Jersey Dutch: bêst, beîśe
• Negerhollands: beest
• → Papiamentu: bichi
• → Sranan Tongo: beist

• beste

beest

1. Alternative form of beeste

• IPA^(key): /beːst/

beest n (plural beesten, diminutive beestje or beestke)

1. Alternative form of bist