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

Stephen wrote about a new beef jerky stick, Stryve Biltong in Hatch Chile. — Emily Spicer, ExpressNews.com, "Podcast: San Antonio’s best frozen treats, margaritas," 21 Aug. 2019 To illustrate how big the Democratic field is, long-shot candidates Andrew Yang, a businessman, and Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado are having a pre-fight beef. — Gromer Jeffers Jr., Dallas News, "In this week's Democratic presidential debates, is it make or break for Beto O'Rourke, Julián Castro?," 29 July 2019 There were rarely any easily accessible bathrooms or places to buy sodas or beef jerky. — David Williams For Cnn, CNN, "950 miles in two days. Taking an electric road trip in a Tesla," 25 July 2019 In 2006, the charity began raising funds to send care packages that included items such as coffee and beef jerky to troops stationed overseas and to injured veterans in military hospitals. — Los Angeles Times, "This tea party charity sends care packages to troops. California says it misspent funds," 24 July 2019 Kubisch also offers various flavors of beef jerky and salami Stix. — Micah Walker, Detroit Free Press, "Joyview Meat in Redford celebrates 50 years of sausage making," 21 June 2019 Cujo enjoyed the air conditioning and the officer's beef jerky, according to the post. — Julian Gill, Houston Chronicle, "Pitbull reportedly 'hijacks' Texas police officer's car, steals his beef jerky," 17 June 2019 What's there: More than 35 vendors sell fresh produce, coffee, kombucha, beef jerky, donuts, flowers, plants, honey, waffles, dog treats and prepared food. — Emma Kate Fittes, Indianapolis Star, "Here's your 2019 guide to Indianapolis area farmers markets," 12 June 2019 But first, the basics: Pusha T has long had beef with fellow rapper Lil Wayne, Drake’s labelmate on Cash Money Records. — Bridget Read, Vogue, "This Was the Year of Celebrity Feuds," 26 Dec. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Legislation recently filed by Democratic State Rep. Michael Brennan would beef up state assistance to asylum seekers. — Jennifer Levitz, WSJ, "Maine’s Largest City Strains Under Asylum-Seeker Influx," 27 Jan. 2019 The legislation will also beef up post-release supervision to help ex-offenders stay on track. — Joshua Miller, BostonGlobe.com, "Mass. Legislature sends Baker sweeping criminal justice bill," 4 Apr. 2018 The carrier also will beef up its presence in Phoenix by adding more flights on existing routes. — Ben Mutzabaugh, USA TODAY, "March route roundup: Where airlines are adding (or cutting) service," 26 Mar. 2018 Busch could beef up his IMDB page instead of racing for NASCAR titles. — Dan Gelston, Houston Chronicle, "Kurt Busch aims for repeat as Daytona 500 champ," 10 Feb. 2018 This perplexing nod might beef up Norwell’s market value, and his franchise-tag number is already inflated by the NFL’s asinine practice of lumping all linemen into the same pricing category. — Andy Benoit, SI.com, "Ranking the NFL's Neediest Teams," 9 Feb. 2018 Shortly before Abbott's announcement, Sen. Ted Cruz issued a statement calling on Congress to take a number of steps to beef up border security and address the migrant crisis. — James Barragán, Dallas News, "Texas to send 1,000 National Guard troops to Mexico border to deal with 'escalating crisis'," 21 June 2019 Congress set aside $380 million last year for states to beef up election security through the Help America Vote Act, but experts say more federal funding is needed. — Matt Laslo, WIRED, "Before Mueller’s Testimony, Dems Demand More Election Security," 23 July 2019 Microsoft has not issued a fix for the vulnerability at this time, but did release an advisory document for users, offering a workaround to beef up security. — Chris Morris, Fortune, "Microsoft Excel Vulnerability Could Put 120 Million Users At Risk," 27 June 2019

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.