be·night v. t. [imp. & p. p. Benighted; p. pr. & vb. n. Benighting.]
  1. To involve in darkness; to shroud with the shades of night; to obscure. [Archaic]
     The clouds benight the sky.   --Garth.
  2. To overtake with night or darkness, especially before the end of a day's journey or task.
     Some virgin, sure, . . . benighted in these woods.   --Milton.
  3. To involve in moral darkness, or ignorance; to debar from intellectual light.
  Shall we to men benighted
  The lamp of life deny ?   --Heber.
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  benight
       v 1: overtake with darkness or night
       2: envelop with social, intellectual, or moral darkness; "The
          benighted peoples of this area"
       3: make difficult to perceive by sight; "The foliage of the
          huge tree obscures the view of the lake" [syn: obscure,
          bedim]