1
as in plagues
to cause persistent suffering to
he's been beset by a lack of self-confidence virtually his entire life
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in attacks
to take sudden, violent action against
the unsuspecting tourists were suddenly beset by robbers
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for besets
Verb
-
The damned disease especially plagues Mexican American men like me, and many aren’t getting screened.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
3 Feb. 2026 -
Similarly, programs that encourage regular movement and mental breaks help mitigate the burnout that often plagues high-growth teams.—
Serenity Gibbons,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
An autoimmune disease is a chronic condition in which part of your immune system mistakenly attacks part of your own body.—
Ruth Jessen Hickman,
Health,
10 Feb. 2026
-
After learning that Casper had been diagnosed with Guillain Barré Syndrome, a condition in which the body’s immune system attacks the nerves, Aidan Oldenburg, Ben Richardson and Luc Violette needed somebody with experience that could help them in the interim.—
Dane Mizutani,
Twin Cities,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
In other words, a sort of onanism of the soul afflicts him.—
Hermione Hoby,
New Yorker,
26 Jan. 2026
-
The disease afflicts individuals as well as corporate entities.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The White House told ProPublica that anyone who assaults federal immigration agents would be prosecuted.—
Nicole Foy,
ProPublica,
18 Oct. 2025
-
The Kid also physically assaults Apollonia at one point.—
Ross Raihala,
Twin Cities,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
China, which jails human rights activists in Hong Kong, persecutes Uyghurs, has killed hundreds of thousands of Tibetans and has committed genocide against the Falun Gong, is on the UN Human Rights Council.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
18 Feb. 2026
-
In Russia, the civilian repressive apparatus persecutes the military, which leaps at every chance for revenge.—
Stephen Kotkin,
Foreign Affairs,
16 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
More news to know now FBI raids Atlanta election facility.—
Nicole Fallert,
USA Today,
29 Jan. 2026
-
Some owls will hunt the wildlife that raids our garbage cans, like skunks and opossums.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
2 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
But the deeper wound comes after Bree storms out.—
JP Mangalindan,
Time,
17 Feb. 2026
-
God storms American politics Single-day general admission tickets are $145, while weekend passes are $249 and weekend VIP passes are $409.—
Jay Stahl,
USA Today,
14 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
This shade strikes that balance while popping beautifully deeper skin tones.—
Taryn Brooke,
Glamour,
16 Feb. 2026
-
The pin strikes the edge of the rimfire cartridge to send the bullet down the range.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Feb. 2026
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.
Cite this Entry
“Besets.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/besets. Accessed 19 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
