beating

Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)

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. [1913 Webster]

Thou shalt beat some of it [spices] very small.— Ex. xxx. 36.[1913 Webster]

They did beat the gold into thin plates.— Ex. xxxix. 3.[1913 Webster]

2.To punish by blows; to thrash. [1913 Webster]

3.To scour or range over in hunting, accompanied with the noise made by striking bushes, etc., for the purpose of rousing game. [1913 Webster]

To beat the woods, and rouse the bounding prey.— Prior.[1913 Webster]

4.To dash against, or strike, as with water or wind. [1913 Webster]

A frozen continent . . . beat with perpetual storms.— Milton.[1913 Webster]

5.To tread, as a path. [1913 Webster]

Pass awful gulfs, and beat my painful way.— Blackmore.[1913 Webster]

6.To overcome in a battle, contest, strife, race, game, etc.; to vanquish, defeat, or conquer; to surpass or be superior to. [1913 Webster]

He beat them in a bloody battle.— Prescott.[1913 Webster]

For loveliness, it would be hard to beat that.— M. Arnold.[1913 Webster]

7.To cheat; to chouse; to swindle; to defraud; -- often with out. [Colloq.] [1913 Webster]

8.To exercise severely; to perplex; to trouble. [1913 Webster]

Why should any one . . . beat his head about the Latin grammar who does not intend to be a critic?— Locke.[1913 Webster]

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. [1913 Webster]

10.to baffle or stump; to defy the comprehension of (a person); as, it beats me why he would do that. [1913 Webster]

11.to evade, avoid, or escape (blame, taxes, punishment); as, to beat the rap (be acquitted); to beat the sales tax by buying out of state. [1913 Webster]

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. [1913 Webster]

Syn: To strike; pound; bang; buffet; maul; drub; thump; baste; thwack; thrash; pommel; cudgel; belabor; conquer; defeat; vanquish; overcome. [1913 Webster]

1.The act of striking or giving blows; punishment or chastisement by blows. [1913 Webster]

2.Pulsation; throbbing; as, the beating of the heart. [1913 Webster]

3.(Acoustics & Mus.) Pulsative sounds. See Beat, n. [1913 Webster]

4.(Naut.) The process of sailing against the wind by tacks in zigzag direction. [1913 Webster]