Third person singular form of 'bethorn,' meaning to provide with thorns or make something thorny or prickly.
Combination of the productive prefix 'be-' with 'thorns,' creating a causative verb meaning to cause something to become thorny or to equip with thorns.
Medieval literature often used 'be-' verbs vividly—'the rose bethorns the gardener's hand'—because it creates an image of transformation that simpler verbs can't capture; it's poetic engineering.
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