verb
befall
bih-FAWL/bɪˈfɔːl/
To happen to someone, especially as a misfortune.
A muddy mishap befalls the pedestrian when a passing car splashes his clothes.
Etymology
The pieces suggest something falling to someone: the Old English verb already meant both “fall to” and “occur to.” This connects physical falling with an event happening to a person.
In context
I fear that some great trouble will befall us. But let us talk no more of such matters, since we cannot mend them.
More examples
- No harm befell the missing hikers.
- She wondered what had befallen the abandoned village.
- The narrator warns of danger befalling anyone who enters the cave.
Forms
befall · befalls · befell · befallen · befalling
Similar words
- happen
- The ordinary term, without the association with misfortune.
- overtake
- Often suggests a sudden event catching someone unprepared.