Definition of Beating

Noun: beating bee-ting

The act of overcoming or outdoing
- whipping
The act of inflicting corporal punishment with repeated blows
- thrashing, licking, drubbing, lacing, trouncing, whacking, hiding

Verb: beat (beat,beaten) beet

Come out better in a competition, race, or conflict
"Agassi beat Becker in the tennis championship"; "We beat the competition";
- beat out, crush, shell, trounce, vanquish
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";
- beat up, work over
Hit repeatedly
"beat on the door"; "beat the table with his shoe"
Move rhythmically
"Her heart was beating fast";
- pound, thump
Shape by beating
"beat swords into ploughshares"
Make a rhythmic sound
"Rain beat against the windscreen";
- drum, thrum
Glare or strike with great intensity
"The sun was beating down on us"
Move with a thrashing motion
"The eagle beat its wings and soared high into the sky";
- flap
Sail with much tacking or with difficulty
"The boat beat in the strong wind"
(cooking) stir vigorously
"beat the cream";
- scramble
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"
Be superior
"Reading beats watching television"; "This sure beats work!"
Avoid paying
"beat the subway fare";
- bunk
Make a sound like a clock or a timer
"the grandfather clock beat midnight";
- tick, ticktock, ticktack
Move with a flapping motion
"The bird's wings were beating";
- flap
Indicate by beating, as with the fingers or drumsticks
"Beat the rhythm"
Move with or as if with a regular alternating motion
"the city beat with music and excitement";
- pulsate, quiver
Make by pounding or trampling
"beat a path through the forest"
(music) produce a rhythm by striking repeatedly
"beat the drum"
Strike (water or bushes) repeatedly to rouse animals for hunting
Beat through cleverness and wit
"I beat the traffic";
- outwit, overreach, outsmart, outfox, circumvent, outthink
Be confusing or perplexing to; cause to be unable to think clearly
"This beats me!";
- confuse, throw, fox, befuddle, fuddle, bedevil, confound, discombobulate, perplex, vex, stick, get, puzzle, mystify, baffle, pose, bewilder, flummox, stupefy, nonplus, gravel, dumbfound
Wear out completely
"I'm beat";
- exhaust, wash up, tucker [N. Amer], tucker out [N. Amer]