A rare or archaic adjective meaning infested with worms, affected by worms, or made wormy.
Past participle of 'beworm'; from 'be-' + 'worm' + '-ed' (past tense/adjective suffix). As an adjective, it describes something that has been filled or infested with worms. This represents the naturalized past form of an obsolete verb.
If a piece of old wood was 'bewormed,' you'd immediately know it was thoroughly infested and damaged—one word painted a complete picture. Modern English has scattered this meaning across several words (worm-eaten, infested, wormy), but this single adjective once did the job efficiently, showing how we've traded specificity for everyday usability.
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