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behave

 - 4 dictionary results

be⋅have

  [bi-heyv] verb, -haved, -hav⋅ing.
–verb (used without object)
1. to act in a particular way; conduct or comport oneself or itself: The ship behaves well.
2. to act properly: Did the child behave?
3. to act or react under given circumstances: This plastic behaves strangely under extreme heat or cold.
–verb (used with object)
4. to conduct or comport (oneself) in a proper manner: Sit quietly and behave yourself.
Use behave in a Sentence
Origin:
1400–50; late ME behaven (reflexive). See be-, have

Synonyms:
1. perform, acquit oneself, deport oneself.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To behave
be·have   (bĭ-hāv')   
v.   be·haved, be·hav·ing, be·haves

v.   intr.

    1. To conduct oneself in a specified way: The child behaved badly at the party.

    2. To conduct oneself in a proper way: I told the child to behave.

  2. To act, react, function, or perform in a particular way: This fabric behaves well even in hot weather.

v.   tr.

  1. To conduct (oneself) properly: Did you behave yourself at the party?

  2. To conduct (oneself) in a specified way: The witness behaved herself with great calmness.


[Middle English behaven : be-, be- + haven, to have; see have.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

behave 
c.1410, from be- intensive prefix + have in the sense of "to have or bear oneself in a particular way, comport." O.E. behabban meant "to contain." Behavior is 1490, from havour, altered (by influence of have) from aver, from O.Fr. aveir "to have." Behaviorism coined 1913 by U.S. psychologist John B. Watson (1878-1958).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: be·have
Pronunciation: bi-'hAv
Function: verb
Inflected Forms: be·haved;be·hav·ing
transitivesenses
: to bear or conduct (oneself) in a particular way behave intransitive senses
: to act, function, or react in a particular way
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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