BEHA'VE, verb transitive 1. To restrain; to govern; to subdue. He did behave his anger e'er 'twas spent. This sense is obsolete. Yet it often seems to be implied; for to behave one's self, is really, to govern one's self; to have in command. 2. To carry; to conduct; used with the reciprocal pronoun; as, he behaves himself manfully. But the tendency of modern usage is to omit the pronoun; as, he behaves well. BEHA'VE, verb intransitive To act; to conduct; generally applied to manners, or to conduct in any particular business; and in a good or bad sense. He behaves well or will.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI