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YOUR VOCABULARY, ONE WORD AT A TIME

besiege

Verb

IPA /bɪˈsiːdʒ/

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UNDERSTAND THE WORD

Meaning in plain English

To overwhelm someone or an organisation with too many requests, questions or messages.

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Pronunciation

besiege/bɪˈsiːdʒ/

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  1. A free item is advertised

  2. Messages arrive from many people

  3. The owner struggles to answer them all

To be besieged with messages is to receive more than you can comfortably handle.

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Examples in context

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  1. After she advertised the free sofa, she was besieged with messages.
  2. The help desk was besieged with calls when the booking system failed.

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To overwhelm someone or an organisation with too many requests, questions or messages.
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besiege — To overwhelm someone or an organisation with too many requests, questions or messages.

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To overwhelm someone or an organisation with too many requests, questions or messages.

Compare: After she advertised the free sofa, she was besieged with messages.

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Word origin

An altered form of Middle English assiege, from Old French asegier.

Did you know?

This figurative meaning develops the older idea of surrounding a place during an attack.

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besiege

/bɪˈsiːdʒ/ (Verb)

“Use be besieged with calls, questions or requests. The word suggests that the amount is difficult to handle.”

englishskillstudio.com