betide
be·tide/bəˈtaɪd/verb
betide is spelled B-E-T-I-D-E: 6 letters and 2 syllables (be·tide). It appears about once in every 9 million words in written English, the 88,353rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, betide means “Often used in a prediction (chiefly in woe betide) or a wish: to happen to (someone or something); to befall” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in betide?
| Letters | 6: B-E-T-I-D-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: be·tide |
| In writing | about once in every 9 million words; the 88,353rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is betide?
Betide appears about once in every 9 million words in written English, the 88,353rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce betide?
- UK /bɪˈtaɪd/
- US /bəˈtaɪd/
Betide has 2 syllables, split be·tide in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-I_learned_some_phrases-betide.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with betide?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as betide from its last stressed vowel (/aɪd/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of betide
- betides present, singular, he/she/it
- betiding participle, present
- betid participle, past, singular, he/she/it, plural
- betided participle, past, singular, he/she/it, plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does betide mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
datedOften used in a prediction (chiefly in woe betide) or a wish: to happen to (someone or something); to befall.
Whether good or ill betide you, trust in yourself.
- 2
datedChiefly in the third person: to happen; to take place; to bechance, to befall.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Betide in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense (transitive) to happen to (someone or something):
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | beschieden sein, ereilen, zuteilwerden |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does betide come from?
From Middle English bityden [and other forms]; from bi- (prefix forming verbs, usually with a completive, figurative, or intensive sense) + tyden (“to come about, happen, occur; to befall, become of, happen to (someone); to be the fate of (someone); to await (someone); to fare, get along”); tyden is derived from Old English tīdan (“to befall, betide, happen”), related to tīd (“time; season; hour”) (both ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *deh₂- (“to divide, share”) or its extended form *deh₂-y-, whence *dh₂ítis (“time”)) + -an (suffix forming the infinitive of most verbs).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).