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Definition beat in American English

beat verb

verb
/bit/

▪ comfortably, comprehensively, convincingly, easily, narrowly, soundly

1

to hit someone violently several times

Example

They were arrested for beating their children.

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2

to arrive before someone else

Example

See if you can beat me back to the house!

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2.1

to do something before a planned time or before something happens

Example

He was always trying to beat the clock and finish early.

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3

to defeat someone in a game, competition, election, or battle

Example

Hingis needed to beat Davenport to get to the final.

Example

In 2000, George W. Bush narrowly beat Al Gore in the election.

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3.1

to do something faster, for longer, more times, etc. than has been done before

Example

She beat the world record by 0.3 of a second.

Example

I'll be happy if I beat my previous best score.

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Example

It is one of the few businesses that has beaten the recession.

Example

women who have beaten breast cancer

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4

to be better than something else

Example

For me, surfing the Net beats watching TV any time.

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4.1

used for saying that something is very good

Example

You can't beat a good book.

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5

to hit something several times making a regular pattern of sounds, or to make this pattern of sounds

Example

Someone was beating a drum in the distance.

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5.1

to hit an object or part of the body with your hands

Example

I beat my hands on the wall with rage.

Example

He suddenly beat the table with his fist.

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5.2

if a bird or insect beats its wings, or if its wings beat, it hits them together several times

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5.3

to hit something many times or for a long period of time

Example

The rain was beating against the windows with renewed force.

Example

waves beating on the shore

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5.4

to hit a piece of metal with a special hammer in order to make it thinner

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6

if someone's heart beats, it makes the same sound and movements again and again as it pumps blood around their body

Example

The shock had made my heart beat faster.

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7

to mix foods such as eggs, cream, or butter well using a fork or a special tool or machine. This tool or machine can be called a beater.

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8

to launch a product earlier than anyone else and thus get a competitive edge

Example

Obviously, Apple would be upset by any announcement that some company was going to beat them to market.

Definition beat in American English