betray

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   To harm someone who trusts you by being disloyal or untrue to them.

   He betrayed his friends by telling their secrets to the enemy.

2. 2
   verb

   To show a feeling or fact without meaning to.

   Her trembling voice betrayed her nervousness.

3. 3
   verb

   To give away secret information about someone or something.

   A careless remark betrayed their hiding place.

From Middle English betrayen, bitrayen (“to commit an act of treason against”), equivalent to be- + tray (“to betray”). further etymology information Middle English bi- is from Old English be- (“be-”), from Proto-Germanic *bi- (“be-”), from Proto-Germanic *bi (“near, by”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁epi (“at, near”). Compare also traitor, treason, tradition. The modern sense “to disclose, discover, reveal unintentionally” is due to influence from or merger with English bewray (“to reveal, divulge”), which is similar in sound and meaning. The similarity with German betrügen, Dutch b…

Topics