See also: beda, Beda, Béda, běda, Béďa, bēdā, and będą

Latvian

edit

Etymology

edit

From Proto-Baltic *bēd-, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰēdʰ-, the lengthened grade of *bʰedʰ- (to bend, to press). Via ē > ey alternation, there was also a parallel form *bʰeydʰ-, from which derive the Germanic and Greek forms, and its o-grade *bʰoydʰ-, from which derive the Slavic forms. (Some specialists consider bēda a borrowing from Slavic, but the falling intonation is not usually found on borrowings.) The meaning change was probably “to bend, to press” > “to experience coertion, humiliation” > “(to be in) a bad situation.” Cognates include Lithuanian bėdà, Proto-Slavic *běda (adversity, misery) (Russian беда́ (bedá, adversity, tribulation, disaster), Belarusian бе́дны (bjédny), бяда́ (bjadá), Ukrainian біда́ (bidá), Czech běda, bída (need, poverty), Polish bieda (poverty, deprivation, unhappiness)), Gothic 𐌱𐌰𐌹𐌳𐌾𐌰𐌽 (baidjan, to ask for, to force), Old High German beitten (ask for), Gothic 𐌱𐌹𐌳𐌾𐌰𐌽 (bidjan, to ask, to request) (< “to bend”), German bitten, Sanskrit बाधते (bā́dhate, to press), obstacle, hardship (bādhá), Ancient Greek πείθω (peíthō, to convince, to persuade), Latin fīdo (to trust, to rely upon) (< *bʰidʰ-, the zero grade of *bʰeydʰ-).[1]

Pronunciation

edit
  • IPA(key): [bæ̀ːda]
  • Audio:(file)

Noun

edit

bēda f (4th declension)

  1. (only plural) sadness, sorrow, grief (emotional state caused by, e.g., unhappiness, loss)
    dziļas bēdasdeep sorrow
    ciest bēdasto suffer grief
    palīdzēt, dalīties bēdāsto help, to share in (case of) sorrow
    mierināt draugu bēdāsto comfort a friend in sorrow
    bēdu sagrauzts cilvēksa person afficlted with grief, a grieving person
  2. trouble, misfortune, disaster (unpleasant event, circumstance, condition; thoughts about such an event; concern)
    liela bēdagreat misfortune
    maza bēdalittle problem, trouble
    pārvarēt bēduto overcome a disaster
    tā nav nekāda bēdathis is no big trouble
    kas man bēdas!what trouble (is) that to me!

Declension

edit

Synonyms

edit

Antonyms

edit

Derived terms

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ Karulis, Konstantīns (1992) “bēda”, in Latviešu Etimoloģijas Vārdnīca[1] (in Latvian), Rīga: AVOTS, →ISBN