View synonyms for bee

bee

[ bee ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

any hymenopterous insect of the superfamily Apoidea, including social and solitary species of several families, as the bumblebee, honeybee, etc.
the common honeybee, Apis mellifera.
a community social gathering in order to perform some task, engage in a contest, etc.:
a sewing bee;
a spelling bee;
a husking bee.

bee

[ bee ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

Also called bee block. Nautical. a piece of hardwood, bolted to the side of a bowsprit, through which to reeve stays.
Obsolete. a metal ring or bracelet.

B.E.E.

abbreviation for

Bachelor of Electrical Engineering.

BEE

abbreviation for

Black Economic Empowerment: a government policy aimed at encouraging and supporting shareholding by black people

bee

/ biː /

noun

any hymenopterous insect of the superfamily Apoidea , which includes social forms such as the honeybee and solitary forms such as the carpenter bee See also bumblebee mason bee apian
busy bee
a person who is industrious or has many things to do
have a bee in one's bonnet
to be preoccupied or obsessed with an idea

bee

/ biː /

noun

nautical a small sheave with one cheek removed and the pulley and other cheek fastened flat to a boom or another spar, used for reeving outhauls or stays

bee

⁴

/ biː /

noun

a social gathering for a specific purpose, as to carry out a communal task or hold competitions
quilting bee
See spelling bee

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Other Words From

beelike adjective

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Word History and Origins

Origin of bee¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English be(e); Old English bīo, bēo; cognate with Dutch bij, Old Saxon bī, bini, Old High German bīa, bini ( German Biene ), Old Norse bȳ; with other suffixes, Lithuanian bìtė, Old Prussian bitte, Old Church Slavonic bĭchela, Old Irish bech; the unattested bhi- is a North European stem with the same distribution as wax ¹, apple; put the bee on is probably an allusion to sting in sense “dupe, cheat”

Origin of bee²

First recorded before 1050; Middle English bei, be, bih “ring,” Old English bēag, bēah, bēg; cognate with Old Frisian bāg, Old Saxon, Middle Low German bōg, Old High German boug, Old Norse baugr, Sanskrit bhoga-; akin to bow ¹

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Word History and Origins

Origin of bee¹

Old English bīo ; related to Old Norse bӯ , Old High German bīa , Dutch bij , Swedish bi

Origin of bee²

Old English bēag ; related to Old High German boug ring, Old Norse bogi a bow

Origin of bee³

C18: perhaps from dialect bean neighbourly help, from Old English bēn boon

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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

have a bee in one's bonnet,
1. to be obsessed with one idea.
2. to have eccentric or fanciful ideas or schemes:
  Our aunt obviously has a bee in her bonnet, but we're very fond of her.
put the bee on, Informal: Older Use. to try to obtain money from, as for a loan or donation:
My brother just put the bee on me for another $10.
the bee's knees, Older Slang. (especially in the 1920s) a person or thing that is wonderful, great, or marvelous:
Her new roadster is simply the bee's knees.

More idioms and phrases containing bee

In addition to the idiom beginning with bee , also see birds and the bees ; busy as a beaver (bee) ; make a beeline for ; none of one's business (beeswax) .

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

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