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beset

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Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionarybe·set \bi-ˈset, bē-\ transitive verb (-set ; -set·ting) ETYMOLOGY Middle English besetten, from Old English besettan, from be- + settan to set DATE before 12th century1. to set or stud with or as if with ornaments2. trouble, harass inflation besets the economy3. a. to set upon : assail the settlers were beset by savages b. to hem in : surround• be·set·ment \-mənt\ nounEnglish Etymologybeset O.E. besettan "to put, place; own, keep; cover, surround with, besiege," from P.Gmc. *bisatjan (cf. O.S. bisettjan, Ger.besetzen, Goth. bisatjan); see be- + set (v.). The figurative sense also was in O.E.Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary-牛津双解-OALD7besetbeset / bi5set / verb(be·set·ting, beset, beset) [VN] [usually passive] (formal) to affect sb / sth in an unpleasant or harmful way 困扰；威胁: The team was beset by injury all season. 这个队整个赛季都因队员受伤而受困扰。 It's one of the most difficult problems besetting our modern way of life. 那是困扰我们现代生活方式的一个最棘手的问题。 Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridgedbe·set\bə̇ˈset, bē-, usu -ed.+V\ transitive verb(beset ; beset ; besetting ; besets)Etymology: Middle English besetten, from Old English besettan, from be- + settan to set — more at set1. a. : to set at intervals : stud especially with ornaments < leaves whose edges were beset with thorns — J.G.Frazer > < a crown beset with pearls > b. : to cover especially with plant growth < beset with tangled vegetation — Xavier Herbert > : fill or strew especially with impediments < the road is beset with dragons and evil magicians — T.B.Costain >2. : plague, trouble, harass : weigh down : dog, bedevil < subject to none of the pressures that beset American and English papers — F.L.Mott > < distrust of himself had always beset and hampered him — S.H.Adams >3. a. : to set upon : attack repeatedly : assail < throughout the long trek the settlers were beset by savages > b. : to lay siege to : surround so as to compel surrender : besiege < enemy troops beset the fortress > c. : to occupy, take possession of, or overrun in such a way as to prevent free passage : choke off : blockade < a screaming mob beset every road into the town > d. (1) : to close or hem in : encompass, surround < a town beset with towering mountains > (2) : to surround (as a task or problem) with immaterial or nonphysical perils or obstacles < his task was beset with many difficulties > (3) : to surround (as a ship) on all sides with ice so that free movement is totally checked — used of ice fields < in danger of being beset by the worst pack we'd ever seen — Glen Jacobsen >

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