besiege

verb

be·​siege bi-ˈsēj 

bē-

besieged; besieging

transitive verb

1

military : to surround with armed forces

The army had besieged the castle.

2

a

: to press with requests : importune

… besieging the royal ministers with petitions …

—T. B. Costain

besieged by the media

b

: to cause worry or distress to : beset

doubts besieged him

besieger noun

Synonyms of besiege

• attack
• blockade
• encircle
• assault
• beleaguer

Examples of besiege in a Sentence

Customers have besieged the company with questions.

Recent Examples on the Web

Tony season in New York is a veritable marathon for theater-folk, who are besieged by invites to countless classy events in succession. —Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 7 June 2026

Some time later, however, King Ben-hadad of Aram mustered his entire army and besieged Samaria. —Helaine Williams, Arkansas Online, 6 June 2026

In the 41st millennium, the Imperium of Man is besieged by extraterrestrial forces of all sorts and even darker threats, but humanity's defenders are brutal and relentless, too. —Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 2 June 2026

VidCon, the annual online video tech convention that rolls around at the end of June, will be besieged by agents and producers seeking the next great YouTube auteur. —Dana Harris-Bridson, IndieWire, 2 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for besiege

• siege

Kids Definition

besiege

verb

be·​siege bi-ˈsēj 

besieged; besieging

1

: to surround with armed forces for the purpose of capturing

2

: to trouble with requests

3

: to cause worry or distress to

doubts besieged him

besieger noun