BESET Synonyms: 155 Similar and Opposite Words

beset

verb

bi-ˈset

Definition of beset

as in to plague

to cause persistent suffering to he's been beset by a lack of self-confidence virtually his entire life

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to attack

to take sudden, violent action against the unsuspecting tourists were suddenly beset by robbers

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of beset But the story about the war hero Odysseus, whose journey home with his men is beset by sea storms, shipwrecks, gods, monsters and shady ladies, set the template for literature, comic books, science fiction and Hollywood epics for centuries to come. — Jim Beckerman, USA Today, 16 July 2026 With Odysseus away, Penelope is beset by over 100 suitors eager to take the king’s place, while Telemachus is urged by Athena to keep looking for his father. — Britt Hayes, Entertainment Weekly, 16 July 2026 But, within weeks of the project originally reaching completion last month, the water was beset by an algae bloom and pieces of the new coating appeared to be peeling off the bottom. — ABC News, 10 July 2026 But within weeks of the project originally reaching completion last month, the water was beset by an algae bloom and pieces of the new coating appeared to be peeling off the bottom. — Will Weissert, Los Angeles Times, 10 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for beset

Recent Examples of Synonyms for beset

Verb

Entering Friday’s contest, Clark was supposed to be on a minutes restriction due to a back injury that has plagued her all season.

— James Boyd, New York Times, 18 July 2026
But controversies are plaguing the league, Clark has become an unwilling symbol of racial polarization and GOP members of Congress are entering the fray.

— Joel Mathis, TheWeek, 17 July 2026

Definition of plague

Verb

Investigators determined that a group of men had attacked him at his San Jose home and that one of them struck him in the face with the handle of a firearm, police said.

— Molly Gibbs, Mercury News, 21 July 2026
Refineries are maxed out, especially after Iran attacked 30 Middle Eastern refineries during the course of the war.

— David Goldman, CNN Money, 21 July 2026

Definition of attack

Verb

Forty-nine of the afflicted have been hospitalized; of those, thirty-four have gone home.

— News Desk, Artforum, 15 July 2026
Jonestown afflicted Naipaul’s vision, his way of deciphering not just political manias but the dreariness of urban life, the perpetual doom of the nuclear-arms race.

— Hua Hsu, New Yorker, 14 July 2026

Definition of afflict

Verb

Andrews was one of nearly 40 CATS bus drivers who were physically assaulted from 2023 through 2025.

— Caitlin McGlade, Charlotte Observer, 15 July 2026
In 2010, he was arrested for assaulting his spouse or partner and received a diversion program instead of going to prison.

— Rocío Muñoz-Ledo, CNN Money, 14 July 2026

Definition of assault

Verb

Also on Wednesday, Blume returned a Pablo Picasso bust, Fernande/Beatrice (1905), to the descendants of German-Jewish dealer Alfred Flechtheim, who was persecuted by the Reich, reports TAN.

— Brian Boucher, ARTnews.com, 16 July 2026
Mahmoud Khalil alleges private groups, including the conservative Heritage Foundation, and public leaders conspired to persecute him.

— Susan Svrluga, Washington Post, 14 July 2026

Definition of persecute

Verb

Pride events are held today in San Diego to honor the Stonewall uprising of 1969, when police raided the Stonewall Inn in New York City and patrons fought back in a dayslong confrontation.

— Maura Fox, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 July 2026
Bottoms was outspoken after the FBI raided a Fulton County election hub earlier this year in an area part of the greater Atlanta metro area.

— Irene Wright, USA Today, 17 July 2026

Definition of raid

Verb

Meanwhile, the palace has been besieged by loutish suitors, led by the scheming Antinous (Robert Pattinson), all of them vying for the queen’s hand in remarriage and mooching off the absent king’s food and wine.

— Justin Chang, New Yorker, 17 July 2026
There was a dinner for 500 after the fashion show on Tuesday night, and he was besieged by guests wanting to talk to him, talk his picture, take selfies, and just bask in his glory.

— Dylan Jones, Robb Report, 16 July 2026

Definition of besiege

Verb

It’s celebrated on July 14 because that’s the day Parisians stormed the Bastille fortress and prison in 1789, helping spark the French Revolution that overthrew the monarchy and sent King Louis XVI and his queen Marie-Antoinette to the guillotine.

— ABC News, ABC News, 14 July 2026
Jenny was left fuming after the stunning admission and eventually stormed off into her tent.

— Abigail Adams, PEOPLE, 14 July 2026

Definition of storm

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beset

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“Beset.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/beset. Accessed 22 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of beset

verb

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