To crawl over or about something; to cover by crawling.
From 'be-' combined with 'crawl' (from Middle English crauelen, possibly from Scandinavian sources). The prefix suggests movement across or over a surface.
Insects 'becrawl' plants with such frequency that old naturalists used this exact verb to describe swarms moving across leaves. It's a word perfectly suited to describe nature's creeping horrors—imagine '1000 ants becrawled the picnic blanket'—which is probably why it appears in old poetry about nature.
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