be ‧ have S3 W3 /bɪˈheɪv/ BrE AmE verb [intransitive]
[ Word Family: noun : BEHAVIOUR/BEHAVIOR , MISBEHAVIOUR/MISBEHAVIOR , BEHAVIOURISM/BEHAVIORISM , BEHAVIOURIST/BEHAVIORIST ; verb : ↑ behave , ↑ misbehave ; adverb : BEHAVIOURALLY/BEHAVIORALLY ; adjective : BEHAVIOURAL/BEHAVIORAL ]
[ Date: 1400-1500 ; Origin: have 'to hold or bear (yourself), behave' (14-16 centuries) ]
1 . [always + adverb/preposition] to do things that are good, bad, sensible etc SYN act :
She behaved in a very responsible way.
behave towards
I think he behaved disgracefully towards you.
behave like
grown men behaving like schoolboys
behave as if/though
He was a little boy, but he behaved as if he was an adult.
2 . ( also behave yourself ) to not do things that annoy or offend people OPP misbehave :
Will you children please behave!
I hope Nicholas behaved himself at the party.
well-behaved/badly-behaved
a badly-behaved class
3 . [always + adverb/preposition] if something behaves in a particular way, it does those things:
Quantum mechanics is the study of the way atoms behave.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ behave to do and say things that are good, bad, normal, strange etc:
His teacher said he’d been behaving badly at school.
|
I’m not going to talk to her until she starts behaving reasonably.
|
Oh, be quiet! You’re behaving like a two-year-old.
▪ act to behave in a particular way, especially in a way that seems unusual, surprising, or annoying to other people:
Tina’s been acting very strangely lately.
|
What makes grown people act like that?
▪ treat to behave towards someone or deal with someone in a particular way:
She said that he’d treated her really badly throughout their two-year marriage.
|
I’m sick of my parents treating me like a child.
▪ conform to behave in the way that most other people in your group or society behave:
Young people sometimes want to rebel and therefore they refuse to conform.
|
Society typically brings pressure on individuals and groups to conform to civilised norms.
▪ conduct yourself formal to behave in a particular way, especially in a situation where people will notice and judge the way you behave:
Public figures have a duty to conduct themselves responsibly, even in their private lives.
|
By the end of the course, you should be able to conduct yourself with confidence in any meeting.