becharm

English

Etymology

From Middle English becharmen, bicharmen, equivalent to be- +‎ charm.

Verb

becharm (third-person singular simple present becharms, present participle becharming, simple past and past participle becharmed)

1. (transitive, archaic) To charm; fascinate; hold by a charm or spell.
   • 1851, Herman Melville, Moby-Dick Chapter 135

     Ahab knew that the whale had sounded; but intending to be near him at the next rising, he held on his way a little sideways from the vessel; the becharmed crew maintaining the profoundest silence, as the head-bent waves hammered and hammered against the opposing bow.

Derived terms

• becharming