bedel

See also: Bedel

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Medieval Latin pedellus, bedellus, bidellus, from Middle English bedel; cognate with beadle.

Noun

bedel (plural bedels)

1. (historical) An administrative official at universities in several European countries, often with a policiary function at the time when universities had their own jurisdiction over students.

   Synonym: (obsolete slang) poker

   Oxford today has four bedels, representing Divinity, Law, Medicine, and Arts.

   • 1837, William Harrison Ainsworth, “The Rector”, in Crichton, volume I, London: Richard Bentley, page 59:

     Next came the bedels and minor-bedels of all the Faculties, who by some accident were so jumbled together, that it was impossible to determine or arrange any order of precedence. […] These bedels or greffiers were jolly robustious souls, bending beneath the weight of their ponderous silver maces, and attired in gowns of black, blue, violet, or dark red, each colour denoting the Faculty to which the wearer pertained.

Derived terms

• bedelship

Anagrams

• Lebed, debel, beled, deleb, bleed

Afrikaans

Etymology

From Dutch bedelen.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Verb

bedel (present bedel, present participle bedelende, past participle gebedel)

1. To beg

Crimean Tatar

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

bedel

1. A toll, due, fee, contribution

Declension

Declension of bedel

	singular	plural
nominative	bedel	bedeller
genitive	bedelniñ	bedellerniñ
dative	bedelge	bedellerge
accusative	bedelni	bedellerni
locative	bedelde	bedellerde
ablative	bedelden	bedellerden

References

• “bedel”, in Luğatçıq (in Russian)

Czech

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈbɛdɛl]
• Rhymes: -ɛdel
• Hyphenation: be‧del

Noun

bedel

1. genitive plural of bedla

Dutch

Etymology 1

From bedelen.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbeːdəl/
• Hyphenation: be‧del
• Rhymes: -eːdəl

Noun

bedel m (plural bedels, diminutive bedeltje n)

1. a charm (small trinket or pendant on a bracelet or necklace)
2. the practice of begging, mendicancy

Usage notes

In the sense “charm” most commonly used in the diminutive form bedeltje. When used as the first component in a compound noun, however, as in bedelarmband = bedel +‎ armband, the main form is used.

Synonyms

• (begging): gebedel
• (begging): bedelen

Derived terms

• bedelbidden
• bedelbruiker

Etymology 2

From Medieval Latin bidellus, bedellus, pedellus, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *budilaz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bəˈdɛl/
• Hyphenation: be‧del
• Rhymes: -ɛl

Noun

bedel m (plural bedels, diminutive bedeltje n)

1. obsolete form of pedel (“beagle, academic usher”)

Etymology 3

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbeːdəl/
• Hyphenation: be‧del
• Rhymes: -eːdəl

Verb

bedel

1. inflection of bedelen:
   1. first-person singular present indicative
   2. (in case of inversion) second-person singular present indicative
   3. imperative

Anagrams

• beeld, belde

Old French

Etymology

From Medieval Latin bidellus, bedellus, pedellus, from a merger of Frankish *bidil (“candidate, volunteer”) (from Proto-Germanic *bidilaz (“seeker”), from *bidjaną (“to ask, beseech”)) and Frankish *budil (“herald, beadle”) (from Proto-Germanic *budilaz (“herald”)). Akin to Old High German bitil (“candidate”), Old High German butil (“beadle”) (German Büttel), Old English bydel (“apparitor, messenger, beadle”) (English beadle).

Noun

bedel oblique singular, m (oblique plural bedeaus or bedeax or bediaus or bediax or bedels, nominative singular bedeaus or bedeax or bediaus or bediax or bedels, nominative plural bedel)

1. A beadle, academic usher

Descendants

• Gallo: bedaou
• Middle French: bedeau
  • French: bedeau
• → Italian: bidello

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from Old French bedel.

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /beˈdɛw/ [beˈdɛʊ̯]

 

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /bɨˈdɛl/ [bɨˈðɛɫ]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /bɨˈdɛl/ [bɨˈðɛɫ]
  • (Southern Portugal) IPA^(key): /bɨˈdɛ.li/

• Hyphenation: be‧del

Noun

bedel m (plural bedéis)

1. bedel

Further reading

• “bedel”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “bedel”, in Dicionário Infopédia da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2026
• “bedel”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /beˈdel/ [beˈð̞el]
• Rhymes: -el
• Syllabification: be‧del

Noun

bedel m or f by sense (plural bedeles)

1. janitor

   Synonym: conserje m

2. porter

   Synonym: portero m

Further reading

• “bedel”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025

Turkish

Etymology

Etymology tree

Arabic بَدَل (badal)der.

Ottoman Turkish بدل

Turkish bedel

Inherited from Ottoman Turkish بدل, from Arabic بَدَل (badal).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /beˈdel/, [beˈdæl]
• Hyphenation: be‧del

Adjective

bedel

1. equivalent

   Bir dolar, beş Türk lirasına bedel. ― One dollar is equivalent to five Turkish liras.

Noun

bedel (definite accusative bedeli, plural bedeller)

1. value, price

   Synonyms: paha, fiyat

2. substitute

   Synonym: yedek

3. substitute hajji (someone who performs the hajj for payment in place of someone else)

Declension

Declension of bedel

singular plural nominative bedel bedeller definite accusative bedeli bedelleri dative bedele bedellere locative bedelde bedellerde ablative bedelden bedellerden genitive bedelin bedellerin Possessive forms nominative singular plural 1st singular bedelim bedellerim 2nd singular bedelin bedellerin 3rd singular bedeli bedelleri 1st plural bedelimiz bedellerimiz 2nd plural bedeliniz bedelleriniz 3rd plural bedelleri bedelleri definite accusative singular plural 1st singular bedelimi bedellerimi 2nd singular bedelini bedellerini 3rd singular bedelini bedellerini 1st plural bedelimizi bedellerimizi 2nd plural bedelinizi bedellerinizi 3rd plural bedellerini bedellerini dative singular plural 1st singular bedelime bedellerime 2nd singular bedeline bedellerine 3rd singular bedeline bedellerine 1st plural bedelimize bedellerimize 2nd plural bedelinize bedellerinize 3rd plural bedellerine bedellerine locative singular plural 1st singular bedelimde bedellerimde 2nd singular bedelinde bedellerinde 3rd singular bedelinde bedellerinde 1st plural bedelimizde bedellerimizde 2nd plural bedelinizde bedellerinizde 3rd plural bedellerinde bedellerinde ablative singular plural 1st singular bedelimden bedellerimden 2nd singular bedelinden bedellerinden 3rd singular bedelinden bedellerinden 1st plural bedelimizden bedellerimizden 2nd plural bedelinizden bedellerinizden 3rd plural bedellerinden bedellerinden genitive singular plural 1st singular bedelimin bedellerimin 2nd singular bedelinin bedellerinin 3rd singular bedelinin bedellerinin 1st plural bedelimizin bedellerimizin 2nd plural bedelinizin bedellerinizin 3rd plural bedellerinin bedellerinin Predicative forms singular plural 1st singular bedelim bedellerim 2nd singular bedelsin bedellersin 3rd singular bedel bedeldir bedeller bedellerdir 1st plural bedeliz bedelleriz 2nd plural bedelsiniz bedellersiniz 3rd plural bedeller bedellerdir

Derived terms

• bedelli

References

• Nişanyan, Sevan (2002–), “bedel”, in Nişanyan Sözlük