First mentioned in Deuteronomy 1:44. Swarms of bees, and the danger of their attacks, are mentioned in Psalm 118:12. Samson found a "swarm of bees" in the carcass of a lion he had slain (Judges 14:8). Wild bees are described as laying up honey in woods and in clefts of rocks (Deuteronomy 32:13; Psalm 81:16). In Isaiah 7:18 the "fly" and the "bee" are personifications of the Egyptians and Assyrians, the inveterate enemies of Israel.

Noah Webster's New International Dictionary of the English Language

1. (p. p) of Be; -- used for been.

2. (n.) An insect of the order Hymenoptera, and family Apidae (the honeybees), or family Andrenidae (the solitary bees.) See Honeybee.

3. (n.) A neighborly gathering of people who engage in united labor for the benefit of an individual or family; as, a quilting bee; a husking bee; a raising bee.

4. (n.) Pieces of hard wood bolted to the sides of the bowsprit, to reeve the fore-topmast stays through; -- called also bee blocks.