To besiege
Example: The army began to besiege the castle at dawn.
Definition
"To besiege" means to surround a place, such as a castle or city, with armed forces in order to isolate it and force its surrender. It involves cutting off supplies and communication to weaken the defenders, often over an extended period.
Etymology
The word "to besiege" comes from the Old French 'besieger,' which means 'to surround with armed forces.' This itself derives from the combination of 'be-' meaning 'around' and 'sieger' meaning 'to sit or occupy.' Did you know? The term originally implied literally sitting around a place to starve it out.
Learn to use this word actively
"To besiege" appears in the Vocaplus list "English - History - (A2) - set 1", containing 210 commonly used words.
Would you like to not only understand these words, but also remember them and use them actively? Create a free account and select English as the language you want to learn.
Create a free account
