word-forming element of verbs and nouns from verbs, with a wide range of meaning: "about, around; thoroughly, completely; to make, cause, seem; to provide with; at, on, to, for;" from Old English be- "about, around, on all sides" (the unstressed form of bi "by;" see by (prep.)). The form has remained by- in stressed positions and in some more modern formations (bylaw, bygones, bystander).

The Old English prefix also was used to make transitive verbs and as a privative prefix (as in behead). The sense "on all sides, all about" naturally grew to include intensive uses (as in bespatter "spatter about," therefore "spatter very much," besprinkle, etc.). Be- also can be causative, or have just about any sense required. The prefix was productive 16c.-17c. in forming useful words, many of which have not survived, such as bethwack "to thrash soundly" (1550s) and betongue "to assail in speech, to scold" (1630s).

"bidding, command," Old English hæs "bidding, behest, command," from Proto-Germanic *hait-ti-, from *haitan "to call, name" (see behest). With unetymological -t added in Middle English on model of other pairings (compare wist/wesan, also whilst, amongst, etc.; see amidst).

"named, called" (archaic), from levelled past participle of Middle English highte, from Old English hatte "I am called" (passive of hatan "to call, name, command") merged with heht "called," active past tense of the same verb. Hatte was the only survival in Old English of the old Germanic synthetic passive tense. Proto-Germanic *haitanan "to call, summon," also is the source of Old Norse heita, Dutch heten, German heißen, Gothic haitan "to call, be called, command," and is perhaps from an extended form of PIE root *keie- "to set in motion," but Boutkan finds it to be of uncertain origin.

c. 1300, "act of bequeathing," from be- + *cwis, *cwiss "saying" (related to quoth, from Proto-Germanic *kwessiz, from PIE root *gwet- "to say, speak"). Also compare bequeath. With unetymological -t (as in behest). The meaning "legacy, that which is bequeathed" is recorded from late 15c.

also keiə-, Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to set in motion."

It might form all or part of: behest; cinema; cinematography; citation; cite; excite; hest; hight; hyperkinetic; incite; kinase; kinematics; kinesics; kinesiology; kinesis; kinesthesia; kinesthetic; kinetic; kineto-; kino-; oscitant; recital; recitation; recite; resuscitate; solicit; solicitous; suscitate; telekinesis.

It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit cyavate "stirs himself, goes;" Greek kinein "to move, set in motion; change, stir up," kinymai "move myself;" Latin ciere (past participle citus, frequentative citare) "to set in motion, summon;" Gothic haitan "call, be called;" Old English hatan "command, call."