Bedel, bē′dl, Bedell, be-del′, archaic forms of Beadle (q.v.), still used at Oxford and Cambridge.
Bedesman. Same as Beadsman (q.v. under Bead).
Bedevil, be-dev′il, v.t. to throw into confusion: to 'play the devil' with: to torment: to treat with devilish malignity.—pass. to be possessed of a devil, to be devil-rid.—n. Bedev′ilment.
Bedew, be-dū′, v.t. to moisten gently, as with dew.
Bedight, be-dīt′, adj. (poet.) adorned. [Pfx. be-, and Dight.]
Bedim, be-dim′, v.t. to make dim or dark.—pa.p. Bedimmed′.
Bedizen, be-dīz′n, v.t. to dress gaudily.—adj. Bediz′ened.—n. Bediz′enment.
Bedlam, bed′lam, n. an asylum for lunatics: a madhouse: a place of uproar.—adj. fit for a madhouse.—ns. Bed′lamism, anything characteristic of madness; Bed′lamite, a madman. [Corrupted from Bethlehem (St Mary of Bethlehem), the name of a priory in London, afterwards converted into a madhouse.]
Bedouin, bed′ōō-in, n. the name given to those Arabs who live in tents and lead a nomadic life. [Fr.—Ar. bādāwin, dwellers in the desert.]
Bedraggle, be-drag′l, v.t. to soil by dragging in the wet or dirt—most common, the p.adj. Bedrag′gled. [See Draggle.]