To split or cleave apart; to divide or break open.
From Old English 'be-' (prefix) + 'split' (from Old Dutch 'splitten,' meaning to splinter or divide). The prefix may intensify the splitting action.
Medieval carpenters and weaponsmiths would have used 'besplit' to describe wood that was cleaved or broken—it's a word that describes damage and destruction in very physical terms. The 'be-' prefix here might suggest the object ends up completely split.
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