beating

noun beat·ing \ ˈbē-tiŋ \

Definition of beating

1 :an act of striking with repeated blows so as to injure or damage; also :the injury or damage thus inflicted

2 :pulsation

3 :defeat, setback

See beating defined for English-language learners

Examples of beating in a Sentence

he wears a pacemaker to help maintain a regular beating of his heart
took a beating and ended up in second place

Recent Examples of beating from the Web

Some of it may have been Bryant Shirreffs' doing last fall, but no quarterback in UConn history took a worse beating.

— jeff jacobs, courant.com, "Realistically? Don't Expect A Dramatic Turnaround For UConn Football," 30 Aug. 2017
Police are also looking for 33-year-old Alex Michael Ramos in connection with the vicious beating of Harris.

— veronica hilbring, Essence.com, "One Of The White Supremacists Who Beat Deandre Harris In Charlottesville Is Arrested," 28 Aug. 2017
The whole Western look is very romantic, and there’s no beating that wearability and durability factor.

— natasha silva-jelly, Harper's BAZAAR, "Reese Witherspoon Reveals Her Favorite Fashion Trend," 22 Aug. 2017
In April this year, four former guards at the jail were indicted by a federal grand jury in connection with the 2015 beating of an inmate, allegedly in retaliation for a previous incident.

— matt campbell, kansascity, "Jackson County jail is in ‘crisis,’ consultant tells legislators in special meeting," 3 Aug. 2017
Austin Allen, Arkansas -- Led the SEC in passing yards last season despite taking a beating behind a patchwork offensive line.

— creg stephenson, AL.com, "AL.com All-Access: So who's the best quarterback in the SEC in 2017?," 2 Aug. 2017
At the same time, the victim is given a ferocious beating by his captors.

— erin blakemore, Longreads, "Our Zombies, Ourselves: An Undead Reading List," 20 July 2017
An arrest warrant has been issued for the second suspect in the beating, police said.

— nick swedberg, Daily Southtown, "South Holland woman charged in 2015 fatal beating of granddaughter's boyfriend," 19 July 2017
In fact, the commission allowed former police chief Daryl Gates, whose egregious leadership was essentially responsible for the beating of Rodney King and the riots that followed, to write his own civil service evaluations—all of them positive.

— joe domanick, Los Angeles Magazine, "How the Police Commission Got the LAPD to Buy Into De-Escalation," 13 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'beating.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of beating

Middle English betynge, from gerund of beten "to ¹beat"

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First Known Use: 13th century

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beating Synonyms

Synonyms

beat, pulsation, palpitation, pulse, throb

Antonyms

success, triumph, victory, win

Related Words

fluctuation, oscillation, vibration; quiver, tremble, tremor

Near Antonyms

accomplishment, achievement; blowout, cakewalk, landslide, romp, runaway, sweep, walkaway, walkover

BEATING Defined for English Language Learners

beating

noun

Definition of beating for English Language Learners

: the act of repeatedly hitting someone to cause pain or injury : the act of beating someone

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beating

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BEATING Defined for English Language Learners

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