befriend

At a San Francisco playground, a stranger tried to befriend an OpenAI employee who was there with their child.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

Hundreds of people treat the request like religion, posting screenshots of their recent ratings to find new people in the community to befriend and follow.

From Salon ● Jul. 15, 2026

You’re not out to fleece anyone with egregiously high commissions or merely befriend another member because you want to flog the latest financial product.

From MarketWatch ● May 29, 2026

"He would make sure to befriend them and make them feel comfortable."

From BBC ● May 25, 2026

And since you come with an Elf of our kindred, we are willing to befriend you, as Elrond asked; though it is not our custom to lead strangers through our land.

From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien

The wife of a loaded investor dabbles in documentary filmmaking and befriends the spouse of a laid-off factory worker.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026

Cathy befriends young Heathcliff after her rich, alcoholic father brings him to live and work as a servant on their estate perched atop the windy English moors.

From Salon ● Feb. 14, 2026

He befriends Mr. Durand, who owns the station with his partner, Emma, a British researcher, and makes it his mission to keep their station going and the forest around it intact.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 29, 2026

Stick with me... the real drama comes as Eriko befriends a blogger she follows on social media, but things soon become sour as her longing for companionship turns to obsession.

From BBC ● Dec. 24, 2025

As he has no children to play with, he befriends the wild rabbits, offering them food and stroking their fur until he can touch their twitching noses.

From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein

Born in Minnesota, Bill Niman found himself in Bolinas in 1969, where he befriended lefty intellectuals who were critical of factory farming.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

On the comedy scene in Philadelphia, where he lived from 2013 to 2019, he befriended his future “Tires” partners, including Chris O’Connor, a show writer who plays the pensive mechanic Cal.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

Perhaps her most memorable role, however, came two years later when Fricker was cast as the homeless bird lady befriended by Macaulay Culkin's Kevin in Home Alone 2.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

Aang befriended Zuko, an exiled Fire Nation prince who at first hunted Aang to regain his father’s approval before joining his quarry’s mission to restore peace.

From Salon ● Jul. 8, 2026

Ever since the spider had befriended him, he had done his best to live up to his reputation.

From "Charlotte's Web" by E.B. White

He's devoted his life to this case - even befriending Megrahi during his quest to find answers.

From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026

While Aang’s saga follows the trajectory of Western fantasies that revolve around a Chosen One, his stubborn insistence on nonviolence and befriending perceived enemies reflects Miyazaki’s reverence for empathy, innocence and life’s natural beauty.

From Salon ● Jul. 8, 2026

When one man, Samuel Bateman, transforms himself from a schlubby loser to a new cult leader, Marie realizes he’s a predator and goes undercover, befriending him to bring him down.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2026

“She was someone who was very interested in befriending others for status, more so than being a friend,” one classmate recalled.

From Slate ● Dec. 18, 2025

The governor sits down on the edge of his desk and gives me a befriending smile.

From "In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez