bereft

bereft
bereaved, bereft
The verb bereave, meaning ‘to deprive (someone)’, is normally used in the passive. When the meaning refers in general ways to possessions, feelings, etc., the past participle is bereft:

• Without her, he felt bereft as a child at a boarding school —A. N. Wilson, 1982.

Strictly, there should be a sense of being deprived; bereft of should not be used as a synonym for lacking or without (as in bereft of manners). In the context of death the form is bereaved

• (If it is your own mother who is bereaved, the fact that you are grieving too will probably help you both a good deal —E. Deeping, 1979)

and this is frequently used adjectivally

• (It needs to be remembered that bereaved people stay at home —J. Pardoe, 1991

• The bereaved have always wished to ‘remember’ their dead, in the literal sense of reconstituting form and feature —R. Cecil, 1991).


Modern English usage. 2014.

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Synonyms:
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Look at other dictionaries:

  • bereft of — not having (something that is needed, wanted, or expected) They appear to be completely bereft of new ideas. [=to be completely without new ideas] He was bereft of all hope. a man bereft of reason • • • Main Entry: ↑bereft …   Useful english dictionary

  • bereft — ► ADJECTIVE 1) (bereft of) deprived of; without. 2) lonely and abandoned. ORIGIN archaic past participle of BEREAVE(Cf. ↑bereavement) …   English terms dictionary

  • bereft — [bēreft′] vt. alt. pt. & pp. of BEREAVE adj. 1. deprived, robbed, or devoid, as of life, hope, or happiness 2. BEREAVED …   English World dictionary

  • Bereft — Be*reft (b[ e]*r[e^]ft ), imp. & p. p. of {Bereave}. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • bereft — index bankrupt, destitute Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • bereft of — index devoid, insufficient Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • bereft — late 14c., past tense of BEREAVE (Cf. bereave) (q.v.) …   Etymology dictionary

  • bereft — [adj] lacking; missing beggared, bereaved, cut off, deprived, destitute, devoid, dispossessed, divested, fleeced, impoverished, left without, minus, naked, parted from, robbed, shorn, stripped, wanting, without; concepts 546,576 Ant. full, happy …   New thesaurus

  • Bereft — Bereave Be*reave (b[ e]*r[=e]v ), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Bereaved} (b[ e]*r[=e]vd ), {Bereft} (b[ e]*r[e^]ft ); p. pr. & vb. n. {Bereaving.}] [OE. bireven, AS. bere[ a]fian. See {Be }, and {Reave.}] [1913 Webster] 1. To make destitute; to deprive;… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • bereft — adj. (cannot stand alone) stripped bereft of (bereft of all hope; bereft of one s senses) USAGE NOTE: In the meaning having recently lost a dear one , the form bereaved is used the bereaved parents. * * * [bɪ reft] (cannot stand alone) [ stripped …   Combinatory dictionary

  • Bereft — Infobox Film name =Bereft director =Tim Daly and J. Clark Mathis producer =Tim Daly and Stephen Burleigh writer =Peter Ferland || Bereft is a 2004 film written by Peter Ferland and directed by Tim Daly and J. Clark Mathis. Bereft is the first… …   Wikipedia

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