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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

BEAT, v.t. pret. beat; pp. beat, beaten. [L. batuo. See Abate.]
1. To strike repeatedly; to lay on repeated blows, with a stick, with the hand or fist, or with any instrument, and for any cause,just or unjust, or for punishment. Luke 12. Deutoronomy 25.
2. To strike an instrument of music; to play on, as a drum.
3. To break, bruise,comminute, or pulverize by beating or pounding, as pepper or spices. Exodus 30.
4. To extend by beating, as gold or other malleable substance; or to hammer into any form; to forge. Exodus 39.
5. To strike bushes, to shake by beating, or to make a noise to rouse game.
6. To thresh; to force out corn from the husk by blows.
7. To break, mix or agitate by beating; as, to beat an egg with any other thing.
8. To dash or strike, as water; to strike or brush, as wind.
9. To tread, as a path.
10. To overcome in a battle, contest or strife; to vanquish or conquer; as, one beats another at play.
Phrrhus beat the Carthaginians at sea.
11. To harass; to exercise severely; to overlabor; as, to beat the brains about logic.
To beat down, to break, destroy, throw down, by beating or battering, as a wall.
Also, to press down or lay flat, as by treading, by a current of water, by violent wind, etc.
Also, to lower the price by importunity or argument.
Also, to depress or crush; as, to bet down opposition.
Also, to sink or lessen the price or value.
Usury beats down the price of land.
To beat back, to compel to retire or return.
To beat into, to teach or instill, by repetition of instruction.
To beat up, to attack suddenly; to alarm or disturb; as, to beat up an enemy's quarters.
To beat the wing, to flutter; to move with fluttering agitation.
To beat off, to repel or drive back.
To beat the hoof, to walk; to go on foot.
To beat time, to measure or regulate time in music by the motion of the hand or foot.
In the manerge, a horse beats the dust, when at each motion he does not take in ground enough with his fore legs; and at curvets, when he does them too precipitately, or too low. He beats upon a walk, when he walks too short.
To beat out, to extend by hammering. In popular use, to be beat out, is to be extremely fatigued; to have the strength exhausted by labor or exertion.
BEAT, v.i. To more with pulsation, as the pulse beats; or to throb, as the heart beats.
1. To dash with force, as a storm, flood, passion, etc.; as, the tempest beats against the house.
2. To knock at a door. Judges 19.
3. To fluctuate; to be in agitation.
To beat about, to try to find; to search by various means or ways.
To beat upon, to act upon with violence.
Also, to speak frequently; to enforce by repetition.
To beat up for soldiers,is to go about to enlist men into the army.
In seamanship, to beat, is to make progress against the direction of the wind, by sailing in a zigzag line or traverse.
With hunters, a stag beats up and down, when he runs first one way and then another.
BEAT, n. A stroke; a striking; a blow, whether with the hand, or with a weapon.
1. A pulsation; as the beat of the pulse.
2. The rise or fall of the hand or foot, in regulating the divisions of time in music.
3. A transient grace-note in music, struck immediately before the note it is intended to ornament.
In the military art, the beat of drum, is a succession of strokes varied, in different ways, for particular purposes; as to regulate a march to call soldiers to their arms or quarters, to direct an attack or retreat, etc.
The beat of a watch or clock, is the stroke made by the fangs or pallets of the spindle of the balance, or of the pads in a royal pendulum.
BEAT

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: very tired; "was all in at the end of the day"; "so beat I could flop down and go to sleep anywhere"; "bushed after all that exercise"; "I'm dead after that long trip" [syn: all in, beat, bushed, dead] n
1: a regular route for a sentry or policeman; "in the old days a policeman walked a beat and knew all his people by name" [syn: beat, round]
2: the rhythmic contraction and expansion of the arteries with each beat of the heart; "he could feel the beat of her heart" [syn: pulse, pulsation, heartbeat, beat]
3: the basic rhythmic unit in a piece of music; "the piece has a fast rhythm"; "the conductor set the beat" [syn: rhythm, beat, musical rhythm]
4: a single pulsation of an oscillation produced by adding two waves of different frequencies; has a frequency equal to the difference between the two oscillations
5: a member of the beat generation; a nonconformist in dress and behavior [syn: beatnik, beat]
6: the sound of stroke or blow; "he heard the beat of a drum"
7: (prosody) the accent in a metrical foot of verse [syn: meter, metre, measure, beat, cadence]
8: a regular rate of repetition; "the cox raised the beat"
9: a stroke or blow; "the signal was two beats on the steam pipe"
10: the act of beating to windward; sailing as close as possible to the direction from which the wind is blowing v
1: come out better in a competition, race, or conflict; "Agassi beat Becker in the tennis championship"; "We beat the competition"; "Harvard defeated Yale in the last football game" [syn: beat, beat out, crush, shell, trounce, vanquish]
2: give a beating to; subject to a beating, either as a punishment or as an act of aggression; "Thugs beat him up when he walked down the street late at night"; "The teacher used to beat the students" [syn: beat, beat up, work over]
3: hit repeatedly; "beat on the door"; "beat the table with his shoe"
4: move rhythmically; "Her heart was beating fast" [syn: beat, pound, thump]
5: shape by beating; "beat swords into ploughshares"
6: make a rhythmic sound; "Rain drummed against the windshield"; "The drums beat all night" [syn: drum, beat, thrum]
7: glare or strike with great intensity; "The sun was beating down on us"
8: move with a thrashing motion; "The bird flapped its wings"; "The eagle beat its wings and soared high into the sky" [syn: beat, flap]
9: sail with much tacking or with difficulty; "The boat beat in the strong wind"
10: stir vigorously; "beat the egg whites"; "beat the cream" [syn: beat, scramble]
11: strike (a part of one's own body) repeatedly, as in great emotion or in accompaniment to music; "beat one's breast"; "beat one's foot rhythmically"
12: be superior; "Reading beats watching television"; "This sure beats work!"
13: avoid paying; "beat the subway fare" [syn: beat, bunk]
14: make a sound like a clock or a timer; "the clocks were ticking"; "the grandfather clock beat midnight" [syn: tick, ticktock, ticktack, beat]
15: move with a flapping motion; "The bird's wings were flapping" [syn: beat, flap]
16: indicate by beating, as with the fingers or drumsticks; "Beat the rhythm"
17: move with or as if with a regular alternating motion; "the city pulsated with music and excitement" [syn: pulsate, beat, quiver]
18: make by pounding or trampling; "beat a path through the forest"
19: produce a rhythm by striking repeatedly; "beat the drum"
20: strike (water or bushes) repeatedly to rouse animals for hunting
21: beat through cleverness and wit; "I beat the traffic"; "She outfoxed her competitors" [syn: outwit, overreach, outsmart, outfox, beat, circumvent]
22: be a mystery or bewildering to; "This beats me!"; "Got me--I don't know the answer!"; "a vexing problem"; "This question really stuck me" [syn: perplex, vex, stick, get, puzzle, mystify, baffle, beat, pose, bewilder, flummox, stupefy, nonplus, gravel, amaze, dumbfound]
23: wear out completely; "This kind of work exhausts me"; "I'm beat"; "He was all washed up after the exam" [syn: exhaust, wash up, beat, tucker, tucker out]

Merriam Webster's

I. verb (beat; beaten or beat; beating) Etymology: Middle English beten, from Old English b?atan; akin to Old High German b?zan to beat Date: before 12th century transitive verb 1. to strike repeatedly: a. to hit repeatedly so as to inflict pain — often used with up b. to walk on ; tread <beat the pavement looking for work> c. to strike directly against forcefully and repeatedly ; dash against d. to flap or thrash at vigorously e. to strike at in order to rouse game; also to range over in or as if in quest of game f. to mix by stirring ; whip — often used with up g. to strike repeatedly in order to produce music or a signal <beat a drum> 2. a. to drive or force by blows <beat back his attackers> b. to pound into a powder, paste, or pulp c. to make by repeated treading or driving over <beat a path> d. (1) to dislodge by repeated hitting <beat dust from the carpet> (2) to lodge securely by repeated striking <beat a stake into the ground> e. to shape by beating <beat swords into plowshares>; especially to flatten thin by blows f. to sound or express especially by drumbeat 3. to cause to strike or flap repeatedly <a bird beating its wings> 4. a. overcome, defeat; also surpass — often used with out b. to prevail despite <beat the odds> c. bewilder, baffle <it beats me how she does it> d. (1) fatigue, exhaust (2) to leave dispirited, irresolute, or hopeless e. cheat, swindle 5. a. (1) to act ahead of usually so as to forestall (2) to report a news item in advance of b. to come or arrive before c. circumvent <beat the system> d. to outmaneuver (a defender) and get free e. to score against (a goalkeeper) 6. to indicate by beating <beat the tempo> intransitive verb 1. a. to become forcefully impelled ; dash b. to glare or strike with oppressive intensity c. to sustain distracting activity d. to beat a drum 2. a. (1) pulsate, throb (2) tick b. to sound upon being struck 3. a. to strike repeated blows <beating on the door> b. to strike the air ; flap c. to strike cover in order to rouse game; also to range or scour for or as if for game 4. to progress with much difficulty 5. to sail to windward by a series of tacks • beatable adjective II. noun Date: 1615 1. a. a single stroke or blow especially in a series; also pulsation, tick b. a sound produced by or as if by beating c. a driving impact or force 2. one swing of the pendulum or balance of a timepiece 3. a. a regularly traversed round <the cop on the beat> b. a group of news sources that a reporter covers regularly 4. a. a metrical or rhythmic stress in poetry or music or the rhythmic effect of these stresses b. the tempo indicated (as by a conductor) to a musical performer c. the pronounced rhythm that is the characteristic driving force in some types of music (as jazz or rock); also rock II,2 5. a. one that excels <I've never seen the beat of it> b. the reporting of a news story ahead of competitors 6. deadbeat 7. a. an act of beating to windward b. one of the reaches so traversed ; tack 8. each of the pulsations of amplitude produced by the union of sound or radio waves or electric currents having different frequencies 9. an accented stroke (as of one leg or foot against the other) in dancing 10. moment <waited a beat before responding> • beatless adjective III. adjective Etymology: Middle English beten, bete, from past participle of beten Date: 1832 1. a. being in a state of exhaustion ; exhausted b. sapped of resolution or morale 2. often capitalized of, relating to, or being beatniks <beat poets> IV. noun Usage: often capitalized Date: 1957 beatnik

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v., n., & adj. --v. (past beat; past part. beaten) 1 tr. a strike (a person or animal) persistently or repeatedly, esp. to harm or punish. b strike (a thing) repeatedly, e.g. to remove dust from (a carpet etc.), to sound (a drum etc.). 2 intr. (foll. by against, at, on, etc.) a pound or knock repeatedly (waves beat against the shore; beat at the door). b = beat down 3. 3 tr. a overcome; surpass; win a victory over. b complete an activity before (another person etc.). c be too hard for; perplex. 4 tr. (often foll. by up) stir (eggs etc.) vigorously into a frothy mixture. 5 tr. (often foll. by out) fashion or shape (metal etc.) by blows. 6 intr. (of the heart, a drum, etc.) pulsate rhythmically. 7 tr. (often foll. by out) a indicate (a tempo or rhythm) by gestures, tapping, etc. b sound (a signal etc.) by striking a drum or other means (beat a tattoo). 8 a intr. (of a bird's wings) move up and down. b tr. cause (wings) to move in this way. 9 tr. make (a path etc.) by trampling. 10 tr. strike (bushes etc.) to rouse game. 11 intr. Naut. sail in the direction from which the wind is blowing. --n. 1 a a main accent or rhythmic unit in music or verse (three beats to the bar; missed a beat and came in early). b the indication of rhythm by a conductor's movements (watch the beat). c (in popular music) a strong rhythm. d (attrib.) characterized by a strong rhythm (beat music). 2 a a stroke or blow (e.g. on a drum). b a measured sequence of strokes (the beat of the waves on the rocks). c a throbbing movement or sound (the beat of his heart). 3 a a route or area allocated to a police officer etc. b a person's habitual round. 4 Physics a pulsation due to the combination of two sounds or electric currents of similar but not equivalent frequencies. 5 colloq. = BEATNIK. --adj. 1 (predic.) sl. exhausted, tired out. 2 (attrib.) of the beat generation or its philosophy. Phrases and idioms: beat about (often foll. by for) search (for an excuse etc.). beat about the bush discuss a matter without coming to the point. beat the bounds Brit. mark parish boundaries by striking certain points with rods. beat one's breast strike one's chest in anguish or sorrow. beat the clock complete a task within a stated time. beat down 1 a bargain with (a seller) to lower the price. b cause a seller to lower (the price). 2 strike (a resisting object) until it falls (beat the door down). 3 (of the sun, rain, etc.) radiate heat or fall continuously and vigorously. beat the drum for publicize, promote. beaten at the post defeated at the last moment. beat generation the members of a movement of young people esp. in the 1950s who rejected conventional society in their dress, habits, and beliefs. beat in crush. beat it sl. go away. beat off drive back (an attack etc.). beat a retreat withdraw; abandon an undertaking. beat time indicate or follow a musical tempo with a baton or other means. beat a person to it arrive or achieve something before another person. beat up give a beating to, esp. with punches and kicks. beat-up adj. colloq. dilapidated; in a state of disrepair. it beats me I do not understand (it). Derivatives: beatable adj. Etymology: OE beatan f. Gmc

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Beat Beat, n. 1. One that beats, or surpasses, another or others; as, the beat of him. [Colloq.] 2. The act of one that beats a person or thing; as: (a) (Newspaper Cant) The act of obtaining and publishing a piece of news by a newspaper before its competitors; also, the news itself; a scoop. It's a beat on the whole country. --Scribner's Mag. (b) (Hunting) The act of scouring, or ranging over, a tract of land to rouse or drive out game; also, those so engaged, collectively. ``Driven out in the course of a beat.'' --Encyc. of Sport. Bears coming out of holes in the rocks at the last moment, when the beat is close to them. --Encyc. of Sport. (c) (Fencing) A smart tap on the adversary's blade.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Undulation Un`du*la"tion, n. [Cf. F. ondulation.] 1. The act of undulating; a waving motion or vibration; as, the undulations of a fluid, of water, or of air; the undulations of sound. 2. A wavy appearance or outline; waviness. --Evelyn. 3. (Mus.) (a) The tremulous tone produced by a peculiar pressure of the finger on a string, as of a violin. (b) The pulsation caused by the vibrating together of two tones not quite in unison; -- called also beat. 4. (Physics) A motion to and fro, up and down, or from side to side, in any fluid or elastic medium, propagated continuously among its particles, but with no translation of the particles themselves in the direction of the propagation of the wave; a wave motion; a vibration.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Beat Beat, v. t. [imp. Beat; p. p. Beat, Beaten; p. pr. & vb. n. Beating.] [OE. beaten, beten, AS. be['a]tan; akin to Icel. bauta, OHG. b?zan. Cf. 1st Butt, Button.] 1. To strike repeatedly; to lay repeated blows upon; as, to beat one's breast; to beat iron so as to shape it; to beat grain, in order to force out the seeds; to beat eggs and sugar; to beat a drum. Thou shalt beat some of it [spices] very small. --Ex. xxx. 36. They did beat the gold into thin plates. --Ex. xxxix. 3. 2. To punish by blows; to thrash. 3. To scour or range over in hunting, accompanied with the noise made by striking bushes, etc., for the purpose of rousing game. To beat the woods, and rouse the bounding prey. --Prior. 4. To dash against, or strike, as with water or wind. A frozen continent . . . beat with perpetual storms. --Milton. 5. To tread, as a path. Pass awful gulfs, and beat my painful way. --Blackmore. 6. To overcome in a battle, contest, strife, race, game, etc.; to vanquish or conquer; to surpass. He beat them in a bloody battle. --Prescott. For loveliness, it would be hard to beat that. --M. Arnold. 7. To cheat; to chouse; to swindle; to defraud; -- often with out. [Colloq.] 8. To exercise severely; to perplex; to trouble. Why should any one . . . beat his head about the Latin grammar who does not intend to be a critic? --Locke. 9. (Mil.) To give the signal for, by beat of drum; to sound by beat of drum; as, to beat an alarm, a charge, a parley, a retreat; to beat the general, the reveille, the tattoo. See Alarm, Charge, Parley, etc. To beat down, to haggle with (any one) to secure a lower price; to force down. [Colloq.] To beat into, to teach or instill, by repetition. To beat off, to repel or drive back. To beat out, to extend by hammering. To beat out of a thing, to cause to relinquish it, or give it up. ``Nor can anything beat their posterity out of it to this day.'' --South. To beat the dust. (Man.) (a) To take in too little ground with the fore legs, as a horse. (b) To perform curvets too precipitately or too low. To beat the hoof, to walk; to go on foot. To beat the wing, to flutter; to move with fluttering agitation. To beat time, to measure or regulate time in music by the motion of the hand or foot. To beat up, to attack suddenly; to alarm or disturb; as, to beat up an enemy's quarters. Syn: To strike; pound; bang; buffet; maul; drub; thump; baste; thwack; thrash; pommel; cudgel; belabor; conquer; defeat; vanquish; overcome.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Beat Beat, v. t. [imp. Beat; p. p. Beat, Beaten; p. pr. & vb. n. Beating.] [OE. beaten, beten, AS. be['a]tan; akin to Icel. bauta, OHG. b?zan. Cf. 1st Butt, Button.] 1. To strike repeatedly; to lay repeated blows upon; as, to beat one's breast; to beat iron so as to shape it; to beat grain, in order to force out the seeds; to beat eggs and sugar; to beat a drum. Thou shalt beat some of it [spices] very small. --Ex. xxx. 36. They did beat the gold into thin plates. --Ex. xxxix. 3. 2. To punish by blows; to thrash. 3. To scour or range over in hunting, accompanied with the noise made by striking bushes, etc., for the purpose of rousing game. To beat the woods, and rouse the bounding prey. --Prior. 4. To dash against, or strike, as with water or wind. A frozen continent . . . beat with perpetual storms. --Milton. 5. To tread, as a path. Pass awful gulfs, and beat my painful way. --Blackmore. 6. To overcome in a battle, contest, strife, race, game, etc.; to vanquish or conquer; to surpass. He beat them in a bloody battle. --Prescott. For loveliness, it would be hard to beat that. --M. Arnold. 7. To cheat; to chouse; to swindle; to defraud; -- often with out. [Colloq.] 8. To exercise severely; to perplex; to trouble. Why should any one . . . beat his head about the Latin grammar who does not intend to be a critic? --Locke. 9. (Mil.) To give the signal for, by beat of drum; to sound by beat of drum; as, to beat an alarm, a charge, a parley, a retreat; to beat the general, the reveille, the tattoo. See Alarm, Charge, Parley, etc. To beat down, to haggle with (any one) to secure a lower price; to force down. [Colloq.] To beat into, to teach or instill, by repetition. To beat off, to repel or drive back. To beat out, to extend by hammering. To beat out of a thing, to cause to relinquish it, or give it up. ``Nor can anything beat their posterity out of it to this day.'' --South. To beat the dust. (Man.) (a) To take in too little ground with the fore legs, as a horse. (b) To perform curvets too precipitately or too low. To beat the hoof, to walk; to go on foot. To beat the wing, to flutter; to move with fluttering agitation. To beat time, to measure or regulate time in music by the motion of the hand or foot. To beat up, to attack suddenly; to alarm or disturb; as, to beat up an enemy's quarters. Syn: To strike; pound; bang; buffet; maul; drub; thump; baste; thwack; thrash; pommel; cudgel; belabor; conquer; defeat; vanquish; overcome.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Beat Beat, v. t. [imp. Beat; p. p. Beat, Beaten; p. pr. & vb. n. Beating.] [OE. beaten, beten, AS. be['a]tan; akin to Icel. bauta, OHG. b?zan. Cf. 1st Butt, Button.] 1. To strike repeatedly; to lay repeated blows upon; as, to beat one's breast; to beat iron so as to shape it; to beat grain, in order to force out the seeds; to beat eggs and sugar; to beat a drum. Thou shalt beat some of it [spices] very small. --Ex. xxx. 36. They did beat the gold into thin plates. --Ex. xxxix. 3. 2. To punish by blows; to thrash. 3. To scour or range over in hunting, accompanied with the noise made by striking bushes, etc., for the purpose of rousing game. To beat the woods, and rouse the bounding prey. --Prior. 4. To dash against, or strike, as with water or wind. A frozen continent . . . beat with perpetual storms. --Milton. 5. To tread, as a path. Pass awful gulfs, and beat my painful way. --Blackmore. 6. To overcome in a battle, contest, strife, race, game, etc.; to vanquish or conquer; to surpass. He beat them in a bloody battle. --Prescott. For loveliness, it would be hard to beat that. --M. Arnold. 7. To cheat; to chouse; to swindle; to defraud; -- often with out. [Colloq.] 8. To exercise severely; to perplex; to trouble. Why should any one . . . beat his head about the Latin grammar who does not intend to be a critic? --Locke. 9. (Mil.) To give the signal for, by beat of drum; to sound by beat of drum; as, to beat an alarm, a charge, a parley, a retreat; to beat the general, the reveille, the tattoo. See Alarm, Charge, Parley, etc. To beat down, to haggle with (any one) to secure a lower price; to force down. [Colloq.] To beat into, to teach or instill, by repetition. To beat off, to repel or drive back. To beat out, to extend by hammering. To beat out of a thing, to cause to relinquish it, or give it up. ``Nor can anything beat their posterity out of it to this day.'' --South. To beat the dust. (Man.) (a) To take in too little ground with the fore legs, as a horse. (b) To perform curvets too precipitately or too low. To beat the hoof, to walk; to go on foot. To beat the wing, to flutter; to move with fluttering agitation. To beat time, to measure or regulate time in music by the motion of the hand or foot. To beat up, to attack suddenly; to alarm or disturb; as, to beat up an enemy's quarters. Syn: To strike; pound; bang; buffet; maul; drub; thump; baste; thwack; thrash; pommel; cudgel; belabor; conquer; defeat; vanquish; overcome.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Beat Beat, n. 1. A stroke; a blow. He, with a careless beat, Struck out the mute creation at a heat. --Dryden. 2. A recurring stroke; a throb; a pulsation; as, a beat of the heart; the beat of the pulse. 3. (Mus.) (a) The rise or fall of the hand or foot, marking the divisions of time; a division of the measure so marked. In the rhythm of music the beat is the unit. (b) A transient grace note, struck immediately before the one it is intended to ornament. 4. (Acoustics & Mus.) A sudden swelling or re["e]nforcement of a sound, recurring at regular intervals, and produced by the interference of sound waves of slightly different periods of vibrations; applied also, by analogy, to other kinds of wave motions; the pulsation or throbbing produced by the vibrating together of two tones not quite in unison. See Beat, v. i., 8. 5. A round or course which is frequently gone over; as, a watchman's beat. 6. A place of habitual or frequent resort. 7. A cheat or swindler of the lowest grade; -- often emphasized by dead; as, a dead beat. [Low] Beat of drum (Mil.), a succession of strokes varied, in different ways, for particular purposes, as to regulate a march, to call soldiers to their arms or quarters, to direct an attack, or retreat, etc. Beat of a watch, or clock, the stroke or sound made by the action of the escapement. A clock is in beat or out of beat, according as the strokes is at equal or unequal intervals.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Beat Beat, v. i. 1. To strike repeatedly; to inflict repeated blows; to knock vigorously or loudly. The men of the city . . . beat at the door. --Judges. xix. 22. 2. To move with pulsation or throbbing. A thousand hearts beat happily. --Byron. 3. To come or act with violence; to dash or fall with force; to strike anything, as, rain, wind, and waves do. Sees rolling tempests vainly beat below. --Dryden. They [winds] beat at the crazy casement. --Longfellow. The sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and wisbed in himself to die. --Jonah iv. 8. Public envy seemeth to beat chiefly upon ministers. --Bacon. 4. To be in agitation or doubt. [Poetic] To still my beating mind. --Shak. 5. (Naut.) To make progress against the wind, by sailing in a zigzag line or traverse. 6. To make a sound when struck; as, the drums beat. 7. (Mil.) To make a succession of strokes on a drum; as, the drummers beat to call soldiers to their quarters. 8. (Acoustics & Mus.) To sound with more or less rapid alternations of greater and less intensity, so as to produce a pulsating effect; -- said of instruments, tones, or vibrations, not perfectly in unison. A beating wind (Naut.), a wind which necessitates tacking in order to make progress. To beat about, to try to find; to search by various means or ways. --Addison. To beat about the bush, to approach a subject circuitously. To beat up and down (Hunting), to run first one way and then another; -- said of a stag. To beat up for recruits, to go diligently about in order to get helpers or participators in an enterprise.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Beat Beat, a. Weary; tired; fatigued; exhausted. [Colloq.] Quite beat, and very much vexed and disappointed. --Dickens.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(beats, beating, beaten) Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. Note: The form 'beat' is used in the present tense and is the past tense. 1. If you beat someone or something, you hit them very hard. My wife tried to stop them and they beat her... They were beaten to death with baseball bats. VERB: V n, V n to n 2. To beat on, at, or against something means to hit it hard, usually several times or continuously for a period of time. There was dead silence but for a fly beating against the glass... Nina managed to free herself and began beating at the flames with a pillow... The rain was beating on the windowpanes. = pound VERB: V against n, V at n, V on n, also V n • Beat is also a noun. ...the rhythmic beat of the surf. N-SING: usu the N of n • beating ...the silence broken only by the beating of the rain. N-SING: usu the N of n 3. When your heart or pulse beats, it continually makes regular rhythmic movements. I felt my heart beating faster. VERB: V • Beat is also a noun. He could hear the beat of his heart... Most people's pulse rate is more than 70 beats per minute. N-COUNT: usu with supp • beating I could hear the beating of my heart. N-SING: usu the N of n 4. If you beat a drum or similar instrument, you hit it in order to make a sound. You can also say that a drum beats. When you beat the drum, you feel good. ...drums beating and pipes playing. VERB: V n, V • Beat is also a noun. ...the rhythmical beat of the drum. N-SING: usu the N of n 5. The beat of a piece of music is the main rhythm that it has. ...the thumping beat of rock music. N-COUNT: usu sing, the N 6. In music, a beat is a unit of measurement. The number of beats in a bar of a piece of music is indicated by two numbers at the beginning of the piece. It's got four beats to a bar. N-COUNT: usu pl see also upbeat, downbeat 7. If you beat eggs, cream, or butter, you mix them thoroughly using a fork or beater. Beat the eggs and sugar until they start to thicken. VERB: V n 8. When a bird or insect beats its wings or when its wings beat, its wings move up and down. Beating their wings they flew off... Its wings beat slowly. VERB: V n, V 9. If you beat someone in a competition or election, you defeat them. In yesterday's games, Switzerland beat the United States two-one... She was easily beaten into third place. VERB: V n, V n into n 10. If someone beats a record or achievement, they do better than it. He was as eager as his Captain to beat the record. VERB: V n 11. If you beat something that you are fighting against, for example an organization, a problem, or a disease, you defeat it. It became clear that the Union was not going to beat the government... = conquer VERB: V n 12. If an attack or an attempt is beaten off or is beaten back, it is stopped, often temporarily. The rescuers were beaten back by strong winds and currents... South Africa's ruling National Party has beaten off a right-wing challenge. VERB: usu passive, be V-ed adv, V adv n 13. If you say that one thing beats another, you mean that it is better than it. (INFORMAL) Being boss of a software firm beats selling insurance... VERB: no cont, V n 14. If you say you can't beat a particular thing you mean that it is the best thing of its kind. You can't beat soap and water for cleansing. VERB: no cont, V n 15. To beat a time limit or an event means to achieve something before that time or event. They were trying to beat the midnight deadline... VERB: V n 16. A police officer's or journalist's beat is the area for which he or she is responsible. N-COUNT 17. You use beat in expressions such as 'It beats me' or 'What beats me is' to indicate that you cannot understand or explain something. (INFORMAL, SPOKEN) 'What am I doing wrong, anyway?'—'Beats me, Lewis.'... PHRASE 18. see also beaten, beaten-up, beating, beat-up 19. If you intend to do something but someone beats you to it, they do it before you do. Don't be too long about it or you'll find someone has beaten you to it. PHRASE: V inflects 20. A police officer on the beat is on duty, walking around the area for which he or she is responsible. The officer on the beat picks up information; hears cries for help; makes people feel safe. PHRASE: usu n PHR, v-link PHR 21. If you beat time to a piece of music, you move your hand or foot up and down in time with the music. A conductor beats time to show the choir or orchestra how fast they should sing or play the music. He beats time with hands and feet. = keep time PHRASE: V inflects 22. to beat someone black and blue: see black to beat about the bush: see bush to beat or knock the living daylights out of someone: see daylights to beat the drum for someone or something: see drum to beat someone at their own game: see game to beat a retreat: see retreat to beat the shit out of someone: see shit to kick the shit out of someone: see shit to knock the shit out of someone: see shit

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. a. 1. Strike, knock, hit, thump, bethump, belabor, drub, maul, pommel, baste, thrash, thwack, bang, whack, pound, punch, cudgel, cane, whip, buffet, lay blows upon. 2. Hammer, forge. 3. Pound, bruise, pulverize, comminute, bray, break in pieces. 4. Batter, smite, pelt, dash against. 5. Conquer, overcome, subdue, vanquish, overpower, defeat, checkmate. 6. (Colloq.) Excel, surpass, outdo, cut out. II. v. n. 1. Pulsate, throb. 2. Dash, strike. 3. (Naut.) Go against the wind, go a zigzag course. III. n. 1. Stroke, striking, blow. 2. Pulsation, throb, beating. 3. Round, course.

Moby Thesaurus

Alexandrine, Bohemian, about ship, abrade, abscond, accent, accentuation, addle, addled, aerate, agitate, air lane, all in, all up with, alternation, amaze, ambit, amphibrach, amphimacer, anacrusis, anapest, andante tempo, antispast, area, arena, arrhythmia, arsis, article, at a loss, atomize, bacchius, back and fill, baffle, baffled, bailiwick, balk, bamboozle, bamboozled, bang, bar beat, barnacle, barrage, bash, baste, bastinado, baton, batter, bear away, bear off, bear the palm, bear to starboard, beat a ruffle, beat a tattoo, beat about, beat all hollow, beat hollow, beat it, beat off, beat the drum, beat time, beat to windward, beat up, beaten, beaten path, beating, beguile of, belabor, belt, best, bested, better, bicker, bilk, birch, blend, blow, bludgeon, boggle, bone-weary, border, borderland, bout, box off, bray, break, breakaway, brecciate, bring about, bring round, broke, bruise, budget of news, buffalo, buffaloed, buffet, bunco, bung, bung up, bureaucracy, bureaucratism, burn, burn out, bushed, busted, cadence, cadency, caesura, cane, cant, cant round, cast, cast about, catalexis, change course, change the heading, chase, cheat, chinoiserie, chisel, chloriamb, chloriambus, chouse, chouse out of, churn, churn up, circle, circuit, circumvent, clobber, close-haul, clout, club, cog, cog the dice, colon, comb, come about, comminute, compound time, con, confound, confounded, conquer, contriturate, contuse, convulse, copy, count, count the beats, counterpoint, course, cowhide, cozen, cream, cretic, crib, crumb, crumble, crush, cudgel, curry, cut, cycle, cyclicalness, dactyl, dactylic hexameter, daily grind, dance, dash, daze, dazed, dead, dead-and-alive, dead-tired, deadbeat, debilitate, defeat, defeated, defraud, demesne, depart, department, destroy, diaeresis, diastole, diddle, dimeter, din, ding, dipody, disappoint, disarrange, discipline, discomfited, discompose, disintegrate, disquiet, disturb, do, do in, do out of, do up, dochmiac, dog, dog-tired, dog-weary, domain, dominion, done, done for, done in, done up, double a point, down, downbeat, drained, drive, drive away, drive off, drub, drum, drum music, drumbeat, drumfire, drumming, duff, dump, duple time, elegiac, elegiac couplet, elegiac pentameter, emphasis, enervate, epitrite, euchre, exceed, excel, excite, exclusive, exhaust, exhausted, fag, fag out, fagged, fagged out, falcon, fallen, far out, fashion, fatigue, fatigued, feminine caesura, ferment, fetch about, field, finagle, fix, fixed, flag, flagellate, flail, flam, flap, flat, flat broke, fleece, flick, flicker, flight path, flimflam, flip, flit, flitter, flog, floor, floored, flop, flour, flurry, flush, flutter, foam, fob, foil, follow the hounds, foot, forage, forge, form, fowl, fragment, frazzle, free and easy, freeloader, fret, fringy, froth, fuddle, fuddled, fudge, full circle, fustigate, get, give a whipping, give the stick, go about, go hunting, go pitapat, gone, gouge, grain, granulate, granulize, grate, grind, grind to powder, groove, grub, gull, gun, gutter, gybe, gyp, hammer, harass, have, hawk, heartbeat, heartthrob, heave round, hemisphere, heptameter, heptapody, heretical, heroic couplet, heterodox, hexameter, hexapody, hide, hippie, hit the road, hocus, hocus-pocus, hors de combat, horsewhip, hound, hunt, hunt down, iamb, iambic, iambic pentameter, ictus, in a dilemma, in suspense, informal, intermittence, intermittency, ionic, itinerary, jack, jacklight, jade, jibe, jibe all standing, jingle, jog trot, judicial circuit, jurisdiction, keep in suspense, keep time, kinky, knock, knock out, knock up, knocked out, knout, lace, lam, lambaste, lap, largo, larrup, lash, lather, lathered, lay on, leave, leech, level of stress, levigate, lick, licked, lilt, line, loop, luff, luff up, make, manhandle, mantle, march, march tempo, masculine caesura, mash, master, maul, maverick, maze, measure, meter, metrical accent, metrical foot, metrical group, metrical unit, metrics, metron, mill, miss stays, mix, mixed times, molossus, mora, mould, movement, muddle, muddled, mulct, muss up, mystified, mystify, news item, nonplus, nonplussed, not cricket, not done, not kosher, number, numbers, offbeat, on tenterhooks, on the skids, oofless, orb, orbit, original, oscillation, outclass, outdo, outdone, outfight, outgeneral, outmaneuver, outpoint, outrun, outsail, outshine, outstrip, overborne, overcome, overfatigue, overmastered, overmatched, overpowered, overreach, overridden, overstrain, overthrown, overtire, overturned, overweary, overwhelm, overwhelmed, pack the deal, paddle, paeon, pale, palpitate, palpitation, panicked, pant, paradiddle, parasite, paste, path, patter, pelt, pendulum motion, pentameter, pentapody, period, periodicalness, periodicity, perplex, perplexed, perturb, perturbate, pestle, piece, pigeon, pinch, pistol-whip, piston motion, pitapat, pitter-patter, play drum, played out, ply, pommel, poop, poop out, pooped, pooped out, pound, pounding, powder, practice fraud upon, precinct, presto, prevail, prevail over, primary stress, primrose path, proceleusmatic, prosodics, prosody, prostrate, province, prowl after, pulsate, pulsation, pulse, pulverize, pummel, put, put about, put back, put to rout, puzzle, puzzled, pyrrhic, quantity, quiver, rag, ragtime, rake, ransack, rap, rat-a-tat, rat-tat, rat-tat-tat, rataplan, rattattoo, rawhide, ready to drop, realm, reappearance, recurrence, red tape, red-tapeism, reduce to powder, regular wave motion, reoccurrence, return, revolution, rhyme, rhythm, rhythmic pattern, rhythmical stress, ride to hounds, rile, ripple, rise above, road, roil, roll, rook, rotation, rough up, roughen, round, round a point, round trip, rounds, rout, route, routed, routine, rub-a-dub, rubato, ruff, ruffle, ruin, ruined, rummage, rumple, run, run away, run off, rut, sail fine, scam, scattered, scoop, scourge, screw, scrunch, scum, sea lane, search, seasonality, secondary stress, sell gold bricks, series, settle, settled, sextuple time, shake, shake up, shape, shard, shave, sheer, shellac, shift, shikar, shoot, shortchange, shortcut, shred, silenced, simple time, skin, skin alive, skinned, skinned alive, slat, sledgehammer, slew, smash, smear, smell-feast, smite, smother, sound a tattoo, spank, spatter, spell, spent, sphere, splatter, splutter, spondee, sponge, sponger, sport, spot news, sprung rhythm, spume, sputter, squash, squirrel cage, staccato, stack the cards, stalk, stampeded, start, stick, still-hunt, sting, stir, stir up, stone-broke, stony, story, strap, strapped, stress, stress accent, stress pattern, strike, stripe, stroke, stuck, stump, stumped, subdiscipline, subdue, sud, suds, surmount, surpass, swerve, swindle, swing, swing round, swing the stern, swinge, swirl, switch, syncopation, syncope, systole, syzygy, tack, take a dive, tan, tap, tat-tat, tattoo, tempo, tempo rubato, tertiary stress, tetrameter, tetrapody, tetraseme, thesis, thimblerig, thrash, three-quarter time, thresh, throb, throbbing, throw, throw a fight, throw about, thrown, thrum, thump, thumping, thwart, tick, ticktock, time, time pattern, timing, tire, tire out, tire to death, tired out, tired to death, tom-tom, top, touch the wind, tour, track, trade route, trail, traject, trajectory, trajet, trample, transcend, tread, treadmill, tribrach, trim, trimeter, trimmed, triple time, triplet, tripody, triseme, triturate, triumph, triumph over, trochee, trouble, trounce, trounced, truncheon, tucker, tuckered out, turn, turn back, two-four time, unconventional, undo, undone, undulation, unfashionable, unorthodox, upbeat, upset, use up, used up, vanquish, veer, victimize, waggle, walk, wallop, waltz time, washed-up, wave, waver, way out, weak stress, weaken, wear, wear down, wear on, wear out, wear ship, weary, weary unto death, well-worn groove, whack, whacked, whale, wheel, whelmed, whip, whip up, whipped, whisk, whop, wilt, win, wind, wiped out, work up, worn out, worn-out, worst, worsted, yaw