Dictionary

betow en · VERB

Etymology

From be- + tow, or as a back-formation from Middle English betowen (“bestowed, applied”), past participle of bitēn (“to tug, pull, cover, apply, devote, employ, bring about, perform”), from Old English betēon (“to cover, surround, enclose”).

Meanings

1. (obsolete, transitive) To tow about; pull; draw; lead about; conduct.
2. (obsolete, transitive) To educate; influence; steer; direct.
3. (obsolete, transitive) To bestow; apply.
   • For Henry, as lord Bacon observes, loved to employ and advance prelates; because, having rich bishoprics to betow, it was easy for him to reward their services: […] 1821, David Hume, The history of England from the invasion of Julius Cæsar to the accession of Henry VII:

Forms