From 'be-' (thoroughly) + Old French 'guile' (deceit), from Frankish *wigila (trick) — to deceive thoroughly, now softened to 'charm.'
To charm or enchant, often in a deceptive way; to help time pass pleasantly.
Formed in Middle English from 'be-' (intensifying prefix) + 'guile' (trickery, deceit), from Old French 'guile' (trickery), from Frankish *wigila (craft, trick) or Old Norse 'vél' (trick, stratagem), both from Proto-Germanic *wīgla- (sorcery, witchcraft), tracing back to PIE *weik- (to separate out, consecrate, make holy or magical). The same PIE root yielded Latin 'victima' (sacrificial victim), Sanskrit 'vínaṣṭi' (is lost), and Gothic 'weihan' (to fight). The semantic development runs from sacred or magical separateness to ritual deception to mundane