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Definitions

befall

[bih-fawl] / bɪˈfɔl /


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

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"We wake up wondering what new disaster is going to befall Auroville," its French-language magazine declared in December.

From Barron's Jun. 25, 2026

A different sort of disaster may befall Mr. Starmer and Labour in London.

From The Wall Street Journal Apr. 16, 2026

Jo's brother Jimmy said he "never imagined such a profound tragedy would ever befall our family".

From BBC Nov. 25, 2025

With head-scratching lyrics like, “Why should a land have so much meaning when dark times befall it? It’s just a land made of dirt and rock,” they confuse far more than they entertain.

From Salon Nov. 21, 2025

He walked slowly and asked himself ruefully what new misfortune could possibly befall him a moment before the mad hermit in the woods leaped out at him without warning from behind a mulberry bush.

From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller

Money is a form of the “resource curse” that befalls many producers of oil and other vital commodities.

From The Wall Street Journal Oct. 21, 2025

Here, though, it’s justified because what befalls Ron could happen to anyone, and rooting surreal situations in relatability sparks Robinson’s comedy.

From Salon Oct. 13, 2025

A magnetic field around any of these structures would form a continuous tangent vector field, and at this point we know what befalls such hairy constructions.

From Scientific American Aug. 18, 2023

After tragedy befalls his friend and his ex-wife, Bob can’t help but feel it was deserved.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 3, 2023

"Take my betrothed back to the castle, and see that no harm befalls her," the prince told him brusquely.

From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin

There are allusions to the tragedies that befell him: the loss of a young daughter to measles encephalitis and his son’s near-fatal accident.

From The Wall Street Journal Mar. 24, 2026

Because, for veterans of modern warfare, the question isn’t how to come to grips with something that befell us in the manner of a natural disaster.

From Slate Mar. 16, 2026

She will be desperate to avoid the disaster that befell hot men's favourite Ilia Malinin, who suffered a nightmare last week, slumping to an eighth-place finish.

From Barron's Feb. 17, 2026

The issue also befell the German team who won bronze in the biathlon.

From BBC Feb. 9, 2026

At such times she neglected to mention the bad luck that befell the first Stanley Yelnats.

From "Holes" by Louis Sachar

Initially, police had treated it as a tragic accident that had befallen one of Spain's wealthiest individuals.

From BBC May 20, 2026

The same fate could’ve easily befallen this movie, too.

From Salon May 1, 2026

“This is a devastating tragedy that has befallen the Reiner family. We all recognize that and our hearts go out to the entire Reiner family,” he said.

From The Wall Street Journal Dec. 17, 2025

In her essay, Schlossberg acknowledged that her terminal illness adds to a string of tragedies that has befallen the famous political family.

From Los Angeles Times Nov. 22, 2025

Skardebek didn’t understand the disaster that had befallen them.

From "The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge" by M.T. Anderson and Eugene Yelchin

It doesn’t help that a rainstorm of biblical proportions is befalling Chicago.

From The Wall Street Journal Jun. 25, 2026

If we speak about 1929 perhaps we believe we will avoid a similar fate befalling us.

From MarketWatch Oct. 20, 2025

The precedents I have in mind rose and fell on elements of “human nature” that also drive what’s befalling us now.

From Salon Feb. 17, 2025

That defeat would have paled when set beside the one that looked like befalling Scotland now.

From BBC Feb. 3, 2024

It's possible she actually prevented another tragedy from befalling our family.

From "Americanized" by Sara Saedi




Vocabulary lists containing befall


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