BEFRIENDS Synonyms: 63 Similar and Opposite Words

befriends

verb

present tense third-person singular of befriend

as in joins

to become a friend to (someone) He befriended the new student.

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of befriends Upper-class Samantha befriends poor Nelly and changes her snobby grandmother’s opinion on Irish immigration. — Tara Strauch, Fortune, 29 Aug. 2026 Bruce Willis stars as a child psychologist who befriends a young boy (Haley Joel Osment) with an unusual ability. — Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 21 Aug. 2026 The film memorably told the story of a young boy who befriends and tries to free a killer whale who has been captured in the wild and is living in an aquarium. — Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 13 Aug. 2026 In the midst of it, Etna befriends a small, eager canine, Semeru, who knows Soojin and helps Etna reunite with her. — Rachel Vorona Cote, The Atlantic, 30 July 2026 Gu-cheon, who lacks Yang, is fearful of ggeomeoksali, but accidentally befriends one during his time in the palace. — Kayti Burt, Time, 17 July 2026 Yet, in a surprising departure from the real-life Caroline’s historical hatred of Native Americans, this version of the character ultimately befriends White Sun and teaches Good Eagle. — Max Gao, IndieWire, 10 July 2026 At one point, Jessie befriends a gang of tech toys that includes a low-tech potty-training product named Smarty Pants, along with GPS and camera devices Atlas and Snappy. — Rachel Hale, USA Today, 26 June 2026 Stitch centers on a lonely girl who befriends a blue puppy that turns out to be an escaped alien engineered to be a weapon of mass destruction. — Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 12 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for befriends

joins

Verb

Siân Brooke joins a returning cast that also includes Adrian Lester, Alex Jennings and Danny Sapani.

— Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026
The 12-episode series – produced by Studio Dragon and released as a TVING original on CJ ENM‘s Korean streaming platform – follows Kang Seong-jae, played by Park Ji-hoon, a young man who joins the military to escape a difficult reality.

— Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 30 Aug. 2026