bestond

Bestond is the simple past tense form of the Dutch verb bestaan, meaning to exist or to comprise. It indicates that something existed or held true at a past time. The form is used across all persons, with the conjugation ik bestond, jij bestond, hij/zij/het bestond, wij bestonden, jullie bestonden, zij bestonden.

Use of bestond often appears in historical or narrative contexts, where the author describes how things were in the past. For example: "In de jaren negentig bestond er nog geen wifi op veel plaatsen." Another common construction is "het bestaan uit" or "het boek bestond uit drie delen," which describes the components or composition of something.

Etymology and related forms: bestaan comes from older Dutch forms related to the verb staan (to stand) with a prefix, and bestond reflects a regular past tense pattern in Dutch for a strong verb. While the present tense is often rendered as besta(n), the past tense consistently uses bestond for singular and bestonden for plural, across standard Dutch dialects.

Related terms include bestaan (the infinitive) and bestaan uit (to consist of). The term bestond remains widely understood across Dutch-speaking communities and is a staple in historical writing, literature, and everyday narration when referring to past existence or composition.