to happen to someone or something, especially something bad or unexpected.
From Old English 'befeallan' combining 'be-' (around, about) and 'fallan' (to fall), originally meaning 'to fall upon' and gradually extending to mean 'to happen to.'
This is a word Shakespeare loved for tragedy—'what befalls thee?' sounds more dramatic than 'what happens to you?' because the 'fall' in its etymology makes calamity feel inevitable.
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