beef

noun

\ ˈbēf

plural beefs\ ˈbēfs

\ or beeves\ ˈbēvz

Definition of beef

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : the flesh of an adult domestic bovine (such as a steer or cow) used as food

2a : an ox, cow, or bull in a full-grown or nearly full-grown state especially : a steer or cow fattened for food quality Texas beeves a herd of good beef

b : a dressed carcass of a beef animal

3 : muscular flesh : brawn

4 plural beefs : complaint

beef

verb

beefed; beefing; beefs

Definition of beef (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

: to increase or add substance, strength, or power to —usually used with up money to beef up its staff of professional economists— John Fischer

intransitive verb

: complain always beefing about something

Illustration of beef

Noun

beef 2b: A wholesale cuts: 1 shank, 2 round with rump and shank cut off, 3 rump, 4 sirloin, 5 short loin, 6 flank, 7 rib, 8 chuck, 9 plate, 10 brisket, 11 shank; B retail cuts: a heel pot roast, b round steak, c rump roast, d sirloin steak, e pinbone steak, f short ribs, g porterhouse, h T-bone, i club steak, j flank steak, k rib roast, l blade rib roast, m plate, n brisket, o crosscut shank, p arm pot roast, q boneless neck, r blade roast

In the meaning defined above

Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about beef

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Examples of beef in a Sentence

Noun

I'm not eating as much beef as I used to. My real beef is with the organization's president, not the group itself.

Verb

She's always beefing about something. he tends to stand around and beef for hours about any slight, real or imagined

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

If the thought of eating pig feet is horrifying, swap it out for one of a dozen other options such as the braised beef brisket. — Tan Vinh, The Seattle Times, "Bellevue lands a famous, big-name hot-pot spot and 42 other new openings around the Seattle area," 13 Feb. 2019 Kendall and Kylie Jenner were spotted at Drake's party on New Year's Eve amidst his beef with their brother-in-law, Kanye West. — Erica Gonzales, Harper's BAZAAR, "Kendall and Kylie Went to Drake's New Year's Eve Party Amidst His Feud with Kanye," 2 Jan. 2019 Store leftovers refrigerated in an airtight container and smear it on your next roast beef or turkey sandwich. — Claire Perez, Sun-Sentinel.com, "How to make your own aioli sauce," 13 July 2018 Kevin Hart and Mike Epps have taken their beef to Instagram’s comment section. — Stephanie Petit, PEOPLE.com, "Kevin Hart Calls Mike Epps a 'Sad Individual' in Ongoing Feud as Nick Cannon Chimes In," 10 July 2018 Cooking With Horseradish Most of us know horseradish as a classic accompaniment to hot or cold roast beef. — The Editors, Good Housekeeping, "How to Grow and Prepare Horseradish Straight From Your Garden," 27 July 2018 Add the bell peppers, potatoes, carrots, bay leaves, and beans to the beef and stir to combine. — Blake Bakkila, Health.com, "3 Easy Summer Campfire Recipes Your Entire Family Will Enjoy," 22 June 2018 Grilling pork is similar to beef, use direct heat but turn down the temperature to medium-heat. — Timothy Dahl, Popular Mechanics, "The Beginner's Guide to Grilling Any Type of Food," 12 June 2018 Like many rap artists, Drake is no stranger to beef. — Aja Romano, Vox, "Pusha T vs. Drake: the long history of rap’s feud of the moment," 31 May 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

To handle its ever-increasing number of visitors, Germany is busy renovating sights and transportation, beefing up security and updating ticketing procedures for big attractions. — Rick Steves' Europe, The Seattle Times, "What’s new in Germany and the Low Countries for 2019," 23 Jan. 2019 At a recent budget workshop, district officials proposed adding 46 new officers to the Conroe ISD Police Department in order to beef up security at a cost of $3.2 million, a plan that would include new vehicles and other equipment. — Michelle Iracheta, Houston Chronicle, "Conroe ISD, Tri-County health group exploring deal for mental health services," 3 July 2018 As the gun-control legislation flagged in Congress, leaders shifted their focus toward measures that would beef up security at the nation’s schools, including the possibility of arming teachers. — Erica L. Green, BostonGlobe.com, "Trump’s school safety commission won’t look at guns, DeVos says," 5 June 2018 Trump signed a proclamation Wednesday making clear his intention to beef up security at the country's southern border, in part with National Guard forces. — Gordon R. Friedman, OregonLive.com, "Gov. Brown: 'I'll say no' if Trump orders Oregon guardsmen to Mexico border," 4 Apr. 2018 Cal State University San Marcos is beefing up its technology degrees by adding software engineering this coming fall -- funded in part by a new $1.5 million gift by Carlsbad satellite Internet provider Viasat. — Mike Freeman, sandiegouniontribune.com, "CSU San Marcos adds engineering program after gifts from Viasat, Hunter Industries," 20 Mar. 2018 That vision, as detailed by Avila over the past year, is beefing up the team’s analytical and scouting efforts with the goal of building a sustainable product of success. — Anthony Fenech, Detroit Free Press, "Detroit Tigers' Christopher Ilitch 'thrilled' with GM Al Avila's work," 3 Mar. 2018 In addition to the old favorites leaving Netflix, Disney has a lot in the works that'll really beef up the streaming offerings. — Marisa Lascala, Good Housekeeping, "The Disney+ Streaming Service Sounds Like It's Going to Be Every Parent's BFF," 2 Jan. 2019 Because somehow, we were all born with an innate knowledge of beefing up our lashes? — Chelsea Peng, Marie Claire, "7 Game-Changing Mascara Techniques You've Probably Never Considered Before," 4 May 2015

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