belave

verb — 3 senses

belave

verb

Etymology From Middle English bilaven (“to wash all over”), from bi-, be- + laven (“to wash, pour water on”), equivalent to be- + lave.

To lave or wash about; wash all over; wash.

belave

verb

Etymology Anomalous alteration of beleve (“to remain, be alive”) and belive (“to remain, stay”), both from Middle English beliven (“to remain”), from Old English belīfan (“to remain”), from Proto-Germanic *bilībaną (“to remain”). More at belive, leave.

Archaic to remain, continue; to belay

Archaic to be alive

Related terms: belive

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.