🥁 To hit repeatedly 🏆 To defeat 🎵 A rhythm 🤔 To puzzle 🍳 To mix quickly 👮 A patrol area 😩 To exhaust 🔨 To shape by hitting ⛵ To sail upwind ⛵ Sailing upwind 🧑‍🎤 A counterculture person 🌾 To make a trail 😩 Very tired

beat

27 9.6

A writer or artist from the Beat Generation of the 1950s

noun
/biːt/

Literature

: beatnik

Another great program was the Books with Beat program during Teen Read Week.

And it has a very like beat poet vibe to it, right.

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Examples

The most coveted beat in this country.

Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos (2006)
I wondered what the Beats were looking for in those dreadful streets.

Fiction book (1990)
In California, the beat has changed, but the message is the same.

Jesus Revolution (2023)
A beat cop of history.

The Da Vinci Code (2006)
They're all the beat generation and there are lots of other stories in Morocco apart from that, but everyone likes the beats.

Stay (2020)
Over those years, Pacifica Radio brought the Beat poets to the public airwaves.

Blog text (22)
But there are other possibilities for those courageous enough to listen and walk to the beat of a different drummer.

Academic text (2004)
Jack considered himself a proud beat, always advocating for change and creativity in his writing.
The beats of the 1950s introduced a new form of expression that challenged societal norms.
Many artists identify with the beat movement for its emphasis on individuality and artistic freedom.

Synonyms

beatnik

vsbeat

Archaic

15 9.0

A young person in the 1950s who lived a free, artistic life and wore unusual clothes

is any member regardless of age or bohemian lifestyle

Idioms

to beat the odds

16 5.3

To succeed despite great difficulty or low chances

to beat to a pulp

Offensive

15 7.6

Hit someone many times until they are badly hurt or win against them very clearly

to beat to the punch

15 5.5

To do something before someone else to get an advantage

on the beat

Literature

10 5.5

Working in one area, usually as a police officer or reporter

to skip a beat

Informal

9 6.1

To feel your heart stop for a moment because you are suddenly excited or scared

to beat the clock

4 3.9

To finish something before the time runs out

to beat (someone) at (their) own game

Informal

3 5.3

To defeat someone by using their own methods

without missing a beat

Informal

3 5.5

To act immediately and confidently without pausing

to beat the pants off

Informal

3 7.7

Win easily by a lot against another person or team

to beat the bushes

2 7.2

Search carefully in many places to find someone or something

to beat the drum

2 5.5

To speak or act strongly to support a cause

to beat feet

Slang

2 9.0

To leave quickly to escape or avoid something

to beat as one

1 6.1

To move or act together at the same time in the same way

to beat someone's brains out

Offensive

1 9.4

To work very hard or to threaten to hit someone

to beat the stuffing out of

Offensive

1 9.0

Hit someone many times until they are badly hurt

to beat my brain

Informal

1 8.2

To think very hard to remember something or to solve a problem

to beat the band

Informal

1 8.9

To do something with great energy and excitement

to beat a retreat

1 6.0

To leave a place quickly to avoid danger or trouble

to beat all expectations

3.9

To do much better than people expected

to beat off with a stick

Informal

8.8

Push away a lot of people or fans as a joke about being too popular

to beat one's breast

Literature

9.1

Show deep regret by hitting your chest and crying

to beat one's meat

Offensive

9.9

To touch his own penis to feel sexual pleasure

to beat swords into ploughshares

Literature

8.6

To change weapons into tools for peaceful work like farming

to beat the bishop

Offensive

9.9

To touch your own private parts to make yourself sexually excited

to beat the cock

Archaic

9.9

Get up very early before sunrise

beat with the ugly stick

Offensive

9.9

A person or thing that looks very ugly, said as a joke

never missing a beat

Informal

7.5

Always alert and ready to react to news and events

Compounds

Beat Generation

NSFW

2 8.0

A group of American writers and artists from the 1950s who reject social rules and choose free creative lives

beat combo

Archaic

1 6.5

A small band that plays rhythm music for dancing

beat music

Archaic

1 4.0

A style of pop rock from 1960s Britain with strong rhythms and simple melodies

staccato beat

Specialized

1 6.1

Short, sharp musical sounds that have clear gaps between notes

type beat

Jargon

7.7

A music track made in the style of a popular artist

Surface Forms

beat singular

beats plural

Etymology

A beat (member of the Beat Generation) takes its name from the slang beat meaning 'worn out' or 'down', used by writers to show a feeling of being outside mainstream life. So a Beat was someone who felt 'beaten' by society and chose a different way of living.