beat·box·ing
ˈbēt-ˌbäk-siŋ 
: a musical style and technique based on the vocal imitation of percussion sounds
They were both rhyming, and I was more into break-dancing and beatboxing.—
Busta Rhymes
Busta RhymesVox Audio is an … unaccompanied performance ensemble that uses tonal color, imitation of instrumental sounds, harmonic textures and beatboxing.—Ed Balint
Ed Balintbeatboxing
2 of 2present participle of beatbox entry 2
Examples of beatboxing in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the WebJon Porter, The Verge, 16 Nov. 2023
Tamar-kali’s score — which draws on beatboxing, body percussion, Hebrew worship music, and African American spirituals along with its operatic influences — feels busy and referential but also frequently monotonous, too full of reverence to find much lift or drive.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 8 Nov. 2023
Hip-hop icon and beatboxing pioneer Doug E. Fresh has teamed up with the McCormick® brand to release an original song and music video, marking the brand’s first bottle redesign in almost four decades and celebrating the 50 years of hip-hop.
—Shelby Stewart, Essence, 22 Aug. 2023
And Deadeye is a sweet beatboxing sort struggling with her insecurities who desperately holds on to anything resembling friendship.
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 6 July 2023
Dee, along with Darren Robinson (the Human Beatbox) and Damon Wimbley (Kool Rock Ski) were launched after winning a talent contest in 1983, and spent the better part of the next decade turning their beatboxing and good-natured lyrical antics into Platinum albums and other entertainment fare.
—David Z. Morris, Fortune, 19 Feb. 2021
The New York beatboxing pioneer is set to join the Motown Museum’s board of trustees.
—Brian McCollum, Detroit Free Press, 16 Mar. 2023
Sabrina Wu opened their Tonight Show stand-up set with some very fun impersonations and even some beatboxing.
—Vulture, 7 Oct. 2022
To English ears, Xhosa speech often comes across a bit like highly-skilled beatboxing, mixing recognizeable speech with what sounds like the clacking of objects striking each other.
—Julie Sedivy, Discover Magazine, 14 Feb. 2012
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Noun
Other clips show beatboxing being turned into a drum loop, singing becoming an orchestral score, or chords from a MIDI keyboard creating a vocal choir.
—Jon Porter, The Verge, 16 Nov. 2023
Tamar-kali’s score — which draws on beatboxing, body percussion, Hebrew worship music, and African American spirituals along with its operatic influences — feels busy and referential but also frequently monotonous, too full of reverence to find much lift or drive.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 8 Nov. 2023
Hip-hop icon and beatboxing pioneer Doug E. Fresh has teamed up with the McCormick® brand to release an original song and music video, marking the brand’s first bottle redesign in almost four decades and celebrating the 50 years of hip-hop.
—Shelby Stewart, Essence, 22 Aug. 2023
And Deadeye is a sweet beatboxing sort struggling with her insecurities who desperately holds on to anything resembling friendship.
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 6 July 2023
Dee, along with Darren Robinson (the Human Beatbox) and Damon Wimbley (Kool Rock Ski) were launched after winning a talent contest in 1983, and spent the better part of the next decade turning their beatboxing and good-natured lyrical antics into Platinum albums and other entertainment fare.
—David Z. Morris, Fortune, 19 Feb. 2021
The New York beatboxing pioneer is set to join the Motown Museum’s board of trustees.
—Brian McCollum, Detroit Free Press, 16 Mar. 2023
Sabrina Wu opened their Tonight Show stand-up set with some very fun impersonations and even some beatboxing.
—Vulture, 7 Oct. 2022
To English ears, Xhosa speech often comes across a bit like highly-skilled beatboxing, mixing recognizeable speech with what sounds like the clacking of objects striking each other.
—Julie Sedivy, Discover Magazine, 14 Feb. 2012
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'beatboxing.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Dictionary Entries Near beatboxing
Cite this Entry
“Beatboxing.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/beatboxing. Accessed 1 Dec. 2023.
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