bee

noun

1. A flying insect, of the clade Anthophila within the hymenopteran superfamily Apoidea, known for its organised societies (though only a minority have them), for collecting pollen and (in some species) producing wax and honey.

   “His face was belymmed as byes had him stounge[…].”

   “An angry Wasp th'one in a viall had, / Th'other in hers an hony-laden Bee.”

   “Can there be a more formall, and better ordered policie, divided into so severall charges and offices, more constantly entertained, and better maintained, than that of Bees?”

   “Ariell: / Where the Bee ſucks, there ſuck I, / In a Cowslips bell, I lie, / There I cowch when Owles doe crie, / On the Batts backe I doe flie / after Sommer merrily. / Merrily, merrily, ſhall I liue now / Vnder the bloſſom that hangs on the Bow.”

   “Bees are the moſt excellent of all Inſects vvhatſoever, and expreſſe both vvorth and vvonder in all their vvaies: […]”

2. (informal, proscribed)Any stinging flying insect, especially a wasp.
3. A contest, especially for spelling; see spelling bee.

   “geography bee”

4. A community gathering to share labour, e.g. a sewing bee or a quilting bee.

   “The cellar […] was dug by a bee in a single day.”

   “There was but little variation in types of buildings in the pioneer period: house, church, store, barn and mill were usually much alike except in size, and a raising bee was the ordinary means of their erection.”

   “Particularly resistant, for example, in many parts of northern Europe was the “spinning bee”, a nocturnal gathering of women to exchange gossip, stories, refreshment and – crucially – light and heat, as they spun wool or flax, knitted or sewed.”

5. (obsolete)A ring or torque; a bracelet.

   “And kyng Arthur gaf her a ryche bee of gold and soo she departed”

   “...restoring unto the world much gold richly adorning his Sword, two hundred Rubies, many hundred Imperial Coynes, three hundred golden Bees, the bones and horseshoe of his horse enterred with him...”

6. The name of the Latin script letter B/b.

   “"The ee-vee-ee-ar-en-oh-ee-ell-blank-bee-ell-oh-ess-ess-oh-em-blank-en-ee-cee-tee-ay-ar is especially dee-ee-ell-eye-cee-eye-oh-you-ess." Our friends thanked the spelling bee for his help and then he buzzed off.”

7. (plural-normally)Any of the pieces of hard wood bolted to the sides of the bowsprit, to reeve the fore-topmast stays through.
8. someone connected with Barnet Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.
9. (alt-of)Alternative letter-case form of bee.
10. (South-Africa, abbreviation, alt-of, initialism, uncountable)Initialism of Black Economic Empowerment.

verb

1. (alt-of, obsolete)Obsolete spelling of be.

   “held that a ‘Nicholaitan is an heretike, like Nicholas, who held that wiues should bee common to all alike.’”

2. (form-of, obsolete, participle, past)past participle of be; been

   “His Lady sad to see his sore constraint, / Cride out, Now now Sir knight, shew what ye bee / Add faith vnto your force, and be not faint: / Strangle her, els she sure will strangle thee.”

name

1. A diminutive of the female given name Beatrice.
2. A surname.