: a steady pronounced rhythm stressing the second and fourth beats of a four-beat measure
Examples of backbeat in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Disappearances, of one kind or another, have become the backbeat of Chinese public life under Xi Jinping.
—
Evan Osnos, The New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2023
But the result is something special, a danceable backbeat with vibes that are through the roof, which should find a home on plenty of dance floors even as the weather gets colder.
—Heran Mamo, Billboard, 28 Sep. 2023
Some people hear the birth of rock and roll in the nasty backbeat on records that Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, Junior Wells, and Little Walter, among others, made in Chicago for Chess Records, the storied indie label, in the nineteen-fifties.
—John Seabrook, The New Yorker, 11 Sep. 2023
The other half of the rhythm is the backbeat and kick relationship, or the downbeat and the backbeat.
—Vulture, 16 Mar. 2022
The splashing of children in the irrigation canals and the sloshing of water jugs being carted home provided the backbeat of summer life.
—Alissa J. Rubin Bryan Denton, New York Times, 29 July 2023
All of this creates a thrumming, threatening backbeat to the story, and we’re certainly shown every contour of the crimes, too.
—Daniel D'addario, Variety, 8 July 2023
Church is, and has always been, the community’s backbeat.
—Alison Miller, Washington Post, 9 July 2023
And Rick Marotta, Jim Keltner, all these guys played very much in the pocket, a very lazy backbeat.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 16 May 2023
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Evan Osnos, The New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2023
But the result is something special, a danceable backbeat with vibes that are through the roof, which should find a home on plenty of dance floors even as the weather gets colder.
—Heran Mamo, Billboard, 28 Sep. 2023
Some people hear the birth of rock and roll in the nasty backbeat on records that Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, Junior Wells, and Little Walter, among others, made in Chicago for Chess Records, the storied indie label, in the nineteen-fifties.
—John Seabrook, The New Yorker, 11 Sep. 2023
The other half of the rhythm is the backbeat and kick relationship, or the downbeat and the backbeat.
—Vulture, 16 Mar. 2022
The splashing of children in the irrigation canals and the sloshing of water jugs being carted home provided the backbeat of summer life.
—Alissa J. Rubin Bryan Denton, New York Times, 29 July 2023
All of this creates a thrumming, threatening backbeat to the story, and we’re certainly shown every contour of the crimes, too.
—Daniel D'addario, Variety, 8 July 2023
Church is, and has always been, the community’s backbeat.
—Alison Miller, Washington Post, 9 July 2023
And Rick Marotta, Jim Keltner, all these guys played very much in the pocket, a very lazy backbeat.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 16 May 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'backbeat.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1928, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near backbeat
Cite this Entry
“Backbeat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/backbeat. Accessed 28 Nov. 2023.
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Kids Definition
backbeat
noun
back·beat
-ˌbēt 
: a steady pronounced rhythm stressing the second and fourth beats of a four-beat measure
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