be·reave (bĭ-rēv') tr.v.
be·reaved or be·reft (-rěft'), be·reav·ing, be·reaves
To leave desolate or alone, especially by death: "Cry aloud for the man who is dead, for the woman and children bereaved"(Alan Paton).
Archaic To take (something valuable or necessary), typically by force.
[Middle English bireven, to deprive, from Old English berēafian; see reup- in Indo-European roots.] be·reave'ment n., be·reav'er n.
be·reaved (bĭ-rēvd') adj. Suffering the loss of a loved one: the bereaved family. n. One or those bereaved: The bereaved has entered the church. The bereaved were comforted by their friends.
O.E. bereafian "rob," from be + reafian "rob, plunder," from P.Gmc. *raubojanan. A common Gmc. formation (cf. Du. berooven, Ger. berauben, Goth. biraubon). Since c.1650, mostly in ref. to life, hope, loved ones, and other immaterial possessions. Past tense forms bereaved and bereft have co-existed since 14c., now slightly differentiated in meaning, the former applied to loss of loved ones, the latter to circumstances.