Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Behave

Behave ({not transcribed}) , transitive verb

[Anglo-Saxon behabban to surround, restrain, detain (akin to German gehaben (obs.) to have, sich gehaben to behave or carry one's self); pref. be- + habban to have. See Have, transitive verb ]

1.
To manage or govern in point of behavior; to discipline; to handle; to restrain. [Obsolete]
He did behave his anger ere 't was spent. — Shakespeare
2.
To carry; to conduct; to comport; to manage; to bear; -- used reflexively.
Those that behaved themselves manfully. — 2 Macc. ii. 21

Behave , intransitive verb

To act; to conduct; to bear or carry one's self; as, to behave well or ill.

This verb is often used colloquially without an adverb of manner; as, if he does not behave, he will be punished. It is also often applied to inanimate objects; as, the ship behaved splendidly.