bene

See also: Bene, bene-, B-ene, b-ene, bënë, and bɛŋɛ

English

Etymology 1

From Middle English bene, from Old English bēn (“prayer, request, petition, favour, compulsory service”), from Proto-Germanic *bōniz (“supplication”). Cognate with Danish bøn (“prayer”), Swedish bön (“prayer”), Icelandic bæn (“prayer”), Icelandic bón (“request”). Related to ban. See also boon, bee.

Alternative forms

• been (dialectal)
• ben (obsolete)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biːn/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -iːn
• Homophones: bean, been

Noun

bene (plural benes)

1. (now chiefly dialectal) A prayer, especially to God; a petition; a boon.
   • 1815, William Wordsworth, The Force of Prayer:

     What is good for a bootless bene?

Related terms

• beenship

Etymology 2

Noun

bene (uncountable)

1. Alternative form of benne (“sesame”).

Etymology 3

UK C16. Probably from Latin bene or Italian bene.

Alternative forms

• ben, bien

Adjective

bene (comparative benar, superlative benat)

1. (obsolete, UK, thieves' cant) Good. [16th–19th c.]
   • 1828, Edward Bulwer-Lytton, Pelham: or The Adventures of a Gentleman‎, page 383:

     Egad, you carry a bene blink aloft. Come to the ken alone—no! my blowen; did not I tell you I should bring a pater cove, to chop up the whiners for Dawson?

Synonyms

• See Thesaurus:good

Derived terms

• bene bowse
• bene cove
• bene darkmans
• bene feaker
• bene feaker of gybes
• bene lightmans
• bene mort
• beneship
• beneshiply
• cut bene

Noun

bene (plural benes)

1. (obsolete, UK, thieves' cant) Tongue. [16th–18th c.]

   Stowe your bene!

References

• [Francis Grose] (1788), “Bene”, in A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, 2nd edition, London: […] S. Hooper, […], →OCLC.
• Albert Barrère and Charles G[odfrey] Leland, compilers and editors (1889–1890), “bene”, in A Dictionary of Slang, Jargon & Cant […], volume I (A–K), Edinburgh: […] The Ballantyne Press, →OCLC, page 107.
• John S[tephen] Farmer, compiler (1890), “bene”, in Slang and Its Analogues Past and Present. […], volume I, [London: […] Thomas Poulter and Sons] […], →OCLC, pages 178–179.
• Eric Partridge, The Routledge Dictionary of Historical Slang. Routledge, 1973. →ISBN.

Etymology 4

Clipping of eggs benedict

Alternative forms

• Bene, benny, Benny

Noun

bene (plural benes)

1. (food) Abbreviation of eggs Benedict, an egg dish

Etymology 5

Verb

bene

1. Misspelling of been.

   That would of^[sic] bene a good idea...

Anagrams

• Eben, NEbE, been, eben, neeb

Afrikaans

Noun

bene

1. plural of been

Corsican

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɛne/

Noun

bene m

1. alternative form of bè

References

• https://infcor.adecec.net/

Dutch

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eːnə

Verb

bene

1. (dated or formal) singular present subjunctive of benen

Anagrams

• been

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian bene.

Pronunciation

• Audio (France (Lyon)):

  (file)

Adverb

bene

1. synonym of bien

Gullah

Alternative forms

• 'bene

Etymology

• From Wolof bene.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ben.ne/

Noun

bene

1. sesame

References

• Lorenzo Dow Turner, Africanisms in the Gullah Dialect (1969)