be

For the verb: "to be"

Simple Past:	was, were
Past Participle:	been

Multiple Entries:
  be    BE    Be    be-    beryllium  

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
be/bi/

▶verb (sing. present am; are; is; pl. present are; 1st and 3rd sing. past was; 2nd sing. past and pl. past were; present subjunctive be; past subjunctive were; present participle being; past part. been)

• 1 (usu. there is/are) exist; be present.

• 2 take place.

  ■ occupy a position in space.

  ■ stay in the same place or condition.

  ■ come; go; visit.

• 3 (when connecting a subject and complement) having the specified state, nature, or role: Amy was 91.

  ■ represent or signify.

• 4 informal say: last time I saw her she was all ‘You need to quit smoking!’.

▶auxiliary verb

• 1 used with a present participle to form continuous tenses.

• 2 used with a past participle to form the passive voice.

• 3 used to indicate something that is due to happen.

  ■ used to express obligation or necessity.

  ■ used to hypothesize about something that might happen.

– phrases
the be-all and end-all informal a feature of an activity that is of greater importance than any other.
not be oneself not feel in one's usual physical or mental state.
-to-be of the future: his bride-to-be.

– origin OE bēon, an irregular verb whose full conjugation derives from several orig. distinct verbs; the forms am and is are rel. to L. sum and est.

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
BE

▶abbreviation

• 1 Bachelor of Education.

• 2 Bachelor of Engineering.

• 3 bill of exchange.

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
Be

▶symbol the chemical element beryllium.

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
be-/bɪ-/

▶prefix forming verbs.

• 1 all over; all round: bespatter.

  ■ thoroughly; excessively: bewilder.

• 2 (added to intransitive verbs and to adjectives and nouns) expressing transitive action: bemoan | befriend.

• 3 (added to nouns) affect with: befog.

  ■ (added to adjectives) cause to be: befoul.

• 4 (forming adjectives ending in -ed) having; covered with: bejewelled.

– origin OE, weak form of bī ‘by’.

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
beryllium /bəˈrɪlɪəm/

▶noun the chemical element of atomic number 4, a hard grey metal which is the lightest of the alkaline earth metals. (Symbol: Be)