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behave

verb

Simple meaning

To act, conduct oneself in a specific way.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

bihhayv

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US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

bɪˈheɪv

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

verb

  1. intransitive

    To act, conduct oneself in a specific manner; used with an adverbial of manner.

  2. reflexive

    To conduct (oneself) well, or in a given way; to conform.

  3. intransitive

    To act in a polite or proper way.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
B2 · Upper Intermediate (estimated)
Frequency
Moderately Common
Typical Use
Neutral / general English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: To act, conduct oneself in a specific manner; used with an adverbial of manner.

Used this way, behave is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
No strong connotation
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use behave

  • “The children must learn to behave.”verb

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

behave differentlybehave wellbehave similarly

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Similar Words, What’s the Difference?

Close in meaning, but not always interchangeable.

  • carry

    To bear (oneself); to behave or conduct.

  • bear

    To behave or conduct (oneself).

  • acquit

    To bear or conduct oneself.

  • do

    To act or behave in a certain manner.

Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Word family

Words built from the same root.

  • behaviornounPerson or profession

    Manner of acting or controlling yourself.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

Sense: to act or conduct oneself in a specific manner

doArchaiccarrybeardeportacquit

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.