Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
to bespeak

to bespeak

7 9.3
Show that something has a certain quality
  • verb
  • /bɪˈspik/
  • Formal
: indicar
  • The way she spoke to the audience bespeaks her confidence and expertise.
  • bespeaks the nature

And that seemed to me to bespeak a certain I'll ease with their own choices.

Examples

  • Basho's text never ceases to bespeak the enormous associative power of poetry.

    Academic text (2006)

  • In any case, their homage, coming barely a month after his death, bespeaks a close connection.

    Academic text (1996)

  • His own land bespeaks him, and so do its people.

    Academic text (2001)

  • The demand for insurance bespeaks the presence of a permanent population with enough wealth to safeguard its possessions.

    Academic text (2016)

  • Rather, it bespeaks the inner strength of the sort of knowledge great-books study offers.

    Academic text (2002)

  • The young, fertile maidens' juxtaposition with the mature, accomplished men bespeaks an ideal union.

    Academic text (2008)

  • The mine dump, the old mine, the girders and cables bespeaking obsolete glories.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • Professor Cohen's leadership of the ERIC Clearinghouse for Community Colleges over a 37-year period bespeaks his tenacity and political acumen.

    Academic text (2007)

  • Mundane actualities such as these, bespeaking unrealized or misguided ambitions, should give pause to any aspiring artist.

    Academic text (1992)

  • The charro is magnificently attired in an embroidered riding suit that bespeaks a hoary tradition of rural aristocracy.

    Academic text (1994)

Synonyms

to point
vsto bespeak
∞ 1.0

To show or direct attention to something

shows evidence of a quality or condition rather than just directing attention
to indicate
vsto bespeak
786 2.7

Show or suggest that something is likely true

points to evidence of a quality or condition rather than just likelihood
to signify
vsto bespeak
82 3.7

To be a sign of something, often by a word, action or symbol

highlights evidence of a quality rather than intentionally conveying meaning
to signal
vsto bespeak
63 3.0

To show that something exists or may happen

points to evidence of a current quality or condition rather than predicting
to betoken
vsto bespeak
  • Archaic
1 9.3

To be a sign of something

focuses specifically on showing evidence of a quality or condition

Antonyms

to conceal
179 3.7

To hide something so others cannot see or find it

to disguise
98 3.4

To change how someone or something looks to hide who they are

How Indicative

to demonstrate
570 3.0
to bespeak
  • Formal
7 9.3
to indicate
786 2.7
to suggest
∞ 2.1
to hint
119 2.0

Surface Forms

bespeak infinitive
bespeaking present participle
bespeaks third person singular
bespoke past
bespoken past participle

Morphology

bespeak = speak (semi-transparent) = be + speak

Formally be- + speak is clear, but the modern sense 'indicate' is a figurative extension not fully predictable by basic be- + speak for average learners.

Etymology

Bespeak comes from the old parts be- and speak, so it originally meant to 'speak of' or point to something. That's why when we say something 'bespeaks' a quality or condition, we mean it 'speaks' about or shows that quality.