Pa. t. beheld. Pa. pple. beheld, arch. beholden. Chief forms: Inf. 1–2 biheald-an, 2 -helden, 2–5 -hald-e(n, 3–5 -holde(n, 6– behold. Ind. pres. 3rd sing. 2 bihalt. Pa. t. 1–4 beheold, -hield, -held, -huld, -heild, -heeld, 5– beheld, (4 beholded). Pa. pple. 4 bihalden, 4– beholden, 4–5 beholde, 7– beheld, (4 behelded, beholdyd, 4–6 -ed). For other forms see HOLD. [OE. bihaldan (WSax. behealdan), identical w. OS. bihaldan, OFris. bihalda, OHG. bihaltan, mod.G. behalten, Du. behouden, f. bi- BE- 2 + haldan, healdan to HOLD. The application to watching, looking, is confined to English.]
I. To hold by, keep, observe, regard, look.
† 1. trans. To hold by, keep hold of, retain. Obs.
a. 1000. Cædmon’s Gen., 366 (Gr.). Ðaet Adam sceal … minne stronglican stol behealdan.
c. 1380. Wyclif, Serm., Sel. Wks. I. 384. Men that biholden [MS. E holden] bileve of Crist.
1525. Ld. Berners, Froiss., II. lxiv. [lxix.] 222. Euery man behelde the same oppynyon.
b. intr. (for refl.) To hold, keep to.
a. 1300. Cursor M., 9483. To quas seruis straitly he bi-held.
† 2. trans. To hold by some tie of duty or obligation, to retain as a client or person in duty bound. Found only in the pa. pple. BEHOLDEN, q.v.
† 3. a. intr. To hold on by, appertain or belong to. b. trans. To pertain, relate or belong to, to concern. Obs.
a. 1067. Chart. Eadweard, in Cod. Dipl., IV. 214. God eów ʓehealde and alle ðe ðat beholde intó ðáre hálaʓen stowe.
c. 1175. Lamb. Hom., 65. Þe pater noster bihalt me noht, bute ic þis habbe in mi þoht.
a. 1225. Moral Ode, 156, in E. E. P. (1862), 31. Al hit hanged and bihalt bi þisse twam worde.
c. 1449. Pecock, Repr., I. ix. 45. Ech of hem [gouernauncis] whiche biholden the making … of the said sacramentis.
† 4. trans. To hold or contain by way of purport or signification, to signify, mean. Obs.
c. 1200. Ormin, 13408. We muȝhenn sen whatt itt bihallt.
a. 1225. St. Marher., 7. Whet bihalt,… þat tu ne buhest to me?
† 5. trans. To hold in regard, keep, observe (commands, appointed days, etc.). Obs.
971. Blickl. Hom., 11. Symle bliþe mode Godes beboda utan we behealdan.
1387. Trevisa, Higden (1865), I. 243. Þe Romaynes … byhelde þilke dayes and wrouȝt nouȝt þilke dayes.
† 6. a. trans. To regard (with the mind), have regard to, attend to, consider. b. intr. To give attention or regard, have regard unto, to. Obs.
c. 825. Vesp. Psalter, ix. 1. Bihald to ʓebede minum.
a. 1000. Ags. Ps. lx. 1. Beheald min ʓebed.
a. 1300. E. E. Psalter lxi. 1. Unto mi bede bihald þou.
c. 1300. Beket, 760. Al this (ho so riȝt bihalth) thu gynnest forth to drawe.
1382. Wyclif, Gen. iv. 5. The Lord bihelde to Abel and to his ȝiftis.
a. 1400[?]. Cato Major., II. xxv. Ende and biginnynge of þe werk Boþe þou hem bi-holde.
7. trans. a. To hold or keep in view, to watch; to regard or contemplate with the eyes; to look upon, look at (implying active voluntary exercise of the faculty of vision). arch. This has passed imperceptibly into the resulting passive sensation: b. To receive the impression of (anything) through the eyes, to see: the ordinary current sense. (It is not easy to show the beginning of sense b, as nearly all the early instances have some suggestion of the former: the earlier quotations under b. must therefore be treated as merely introductory.)
a. 971. Blickl. Hom., 11. Englas hie ʓeorne beheoldan.
a. 1200. Trin. Hom., 29. Þe wimman bihalt hire sheawere and cumeð hire shadewe þaronne.
c. 1250. Owl & Night., 1323. On ape mai a boc bi-halde, An leves wenden.
a. 1300. Cursor M., 290. Behald þe sune and þou mai se.
c. 1450. Merlin, xiv. 225. The maiden hym be-heilde moche, and he her.
1523. Ld. Berners, Froiss. (1812), I. 423. They brought him to the princis … who behelde hym right fersly and felly.
1530. Palsgr., 447/1. To se an olde ryddylled queene to beholde herselfe in a glasse.
1605. Bacon, Adv. Learn., I. § 2 (1873), 1. Beholding you not with the inquisitive eye of presumption.
1667. Milton, P. L., IX. 1080. How shall I behold the face Henceforth of God or Angel, earst with joy And rapture so oft beheld?
1676. Hobbes, Iliad, 291. And when enough beholden them he had.
1718. Pope, Iliad, I. 553. From far Behold the field.
b. c. 1175. Lamb. Hom., 177. He muwen ben of-drad þe hine sculleð bi-helde.
a. 1225. Ancr. R., 106. He biheold hu his deore deciples fluen alle vrom him.
1382. Wyclif, Gen. xxiv. 64. Rebecca, Isaac biholdyd, descendide of the camel.
1483. Cath. Angl., 26/1. To behalde: asspicere casu.
1565. Stapleton, Fortresse, 56. And such as haue not heard haue yet beholded.
1596. Shaks., Tam. Shr., II. i. 11. I neuer yet beheld that speciall face, Which I could fancie.
1697. Dryden, Virg. Georg., iii. 711. On Winter Seas we fewer Storms behold.
1850. Mrs. Browning, Poems, I. 90. These are stars beholden By your eyes in Eden.
1860. Tyndall, Glac., I. § 16. 109. Anything more exquisite I had never beheld.
† 8. intr. To look. Const. with various adverbs and prepositions. Obs. (exc. as absolute use of 7.)
c. 1175. Lamb. Hom., 133. Bihald he seide up to heouene.
c. 1200. Trin. Coll. Hom., 153. Bi-hold up to heuene and tel þe sterres.
c. 1325. E. E. Allit. P., A. 809. Hys face … Þat watz so fayr on to byholde.
c. 1386. Chaucer, Frankl. T., 135. Thanne wolde she … pitously in to the see biholde.
1393. Langl., P. Pl., C. I. 14. Esteward ich byhulde · after þe sonne.
1491. Caxton, Vitas Patr. (W. de W., 1495), II. 210 b/2. The holy fader … beholdynge upon hym.
1509. Barclay, Ship of Fooles (1570), ¶¶ vj. Beholde vnto the shore.
1601. Shaks., Jul. C., V. iii. 33. Come downe, behold no more.
1634. Malory’s Arthur (1816), II. 95. They took their horses, and beheld about them.
1795. Southey, Joan of Arc, VI. 277. The Maiden’s host beheld.
† 9. a. intr. To look or face (as a building) against or to (a direction). b. trans. To face. Obs.
1382. Wyclif, Song Sol. vii. 4. The tour of Liban that beholdith aȝen Damasch.
c. 1449. Pecock, Repr., III. i. 280. At the see that biholdith to the west.
1593. T. Fale, Dialling, 8. Let the arke behold the South.
1634. Sir T. Herbert, Trav., 209. The Land is high … chiefly where it beholds the Sea.
1677. Moxon, Mech. Exerc. (1703), 310. The South Erect, whose Plane stands upright, and directly beholds the South.
† 10. trans. To look upon, view, consider as (something); to consider or hold in a certain capacity.
1642. Rogers, Naaman, 344. To behold himselfe the true bread and … water of life.
1650. Fuller, Pisgah, III. i. It is beheld in Scripture as most solemn and of highest importance. Ibid. (1662), Worthies (1840), II. 223. Though beans be generally beheld but as horse and hog-grain. Ibid., 551. He is beheld one of the first merchants.
† II. Senses apparently derived from HOLD at a later period. Only in Sc. Obs. (Some of these are doubtful.)
† 11. intr. To ‘hold,’ stop, wait.
a. 1670. Spalding, Troub. Chas. I. (1792), I. 143 (Jam.). They beheld, but keeped still the fields.
1768. Ross, Helenore, 21 (Jam.). ‘That’s true,’ quo’ she, ‘but we’ll behad a wee.’
† b. trans. ‘To await.’ Jam.
1639. Act Chas. I., Addit. (1814), V. 665 (Jam.). To behold the treattie with the commissioneris.
a. 1662. Baillie, Lett. (1775), I. 24 (Jam.). To behold the event of that meeting.
† 12. trans. ‘To connive at, take no notice of.’ Jam.
a. 1670. Spalding, Troub. Chas. I. (1792), I. 154 (Jam.). To understand if his lordship would behold them, or if he would raise forces against them.
† 13. ‘To permit.’ Jam.
a. 1670. Spalding, Troub. Chas. I. (1792), I. 117 (Jam.). They … desired him out of love (without any warrant) that he would be pleased to behold them to go on, otherwise they were making such preparations that they would come and might not be resisted.
