"The children learned to behave politely during the dinner party."
In plain English: To behave means to act nicely and follow rules without causing trouble.
"The children behaved very well during the movie."
Usage: Use behave to describe how someone conducts themselves according to social expectations or specific instructions. It is often paired with adverbs like badly or properly to indicate whether the behavior met those standards.
Example Sentences
"The children behaved very well during the movie."verb
"Please behave yourself while we are in public."verb
"The children learned to behave nicely at dinner."verb
"I expect you to behave according to the rules of this house."verb
Behave comes from Old English behabban, which originally meant to surround or hold back. The word traveled into modern English with the specific sense of restraining oneself.