to beset by
- phrasal verb
- How can they expect to teach students to think fearlessly if they are beset by fears?
- beset by problems
- beset by famine
- beset by violence
Why a solitary, friendless life must be beset by secret dangers and alarms.
- Why a solitary, friendless life must be beset by secret dangers and alarms.
- There is no area of life that is more beset by conventions than sexuality.
- As the date has approached, I've been beset by terrors and night sweats, wondering where to even begin.
Examples
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The island people are beset by many dangers, Steve - some real, some imagined.
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In a world beset by evil.
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A world beset by a complex of problems, anyone of which would be bad enough?
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Beset by problems of his own making, Mr Jones had turned to drink, and for his misery he had found poor company.
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Our community, like so many others, is beset by poverty, crime, homelessness, hunger, child abuse, drug abuse, and an achievement gap.
Academic text (2015) -
By 1760, it seems, Georgia finally had a functioning judicial system, although one that remained beset by problems.
Academic text (2009) -
The Clinton Core campaign has already been beset by anti-abortion demonstrators.
Academic text (1992) -
Panama's registry is also consistently beset by allegations of corruption.
Academic text (2016) -
Governing institutions, dominated by the PRI, were largely discredited, and the PRI itself was beset by fractious infighting.
Academic text (1999) -
The team was beset by injuries after several players did not show up for the match.
Synonyms
Feeling worried or upset because of problems
Facing serious problems and attacks from others
Full of problems or danger
To have something bad or unwanted that causes problems
Shaken by strong storms or by great troubles
Suffering from pain, illness, or trouble
Having an unwanted duty or problem you must deal with
Antonyms
How Troubled
Surface Forms
Morphology
The verb 'beset' already carries the meaning 'to trouble or harass' and the preposition 'by' marks the cause or source; together they straightforwardly mean 'troubled or surrounded by X'. This follows a regular verb + by (agent/cause) composition, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can reasonably infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Beset by may come from the old image of a town or person being surrounded and attacked from every side, as if enemies stood all around. So when someone is beset by problems, it feels like troubles are all around them, 'surrounding' or 'attacking' them.