beep

1 of 2

verb

ˈbēp 

beeped; beeping; beeps

transitive verb

1

: to cause to sound

beep a horn

2

: to send a message to (someone) with a beeper

Dr. Khoury was beeped to perform an emergency operation at American University Hospital.

—Scot Macleod

intransitive verb

1

: to sound a horn

2

: to make a beep

beep

2 of 2

noun

: a short usually high-pitched sound (as from a horn or an electronic device) that serves as a signal or warning

Examples of beep in a Sentence

Verb

Why did you beep your horn at her?

She beeped at me first.

Something is beeping in the kitchen.

I could hear a beeping noise.

Noun

the beep of a car horn

Please leave a message after the beep.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

As beeping forklifts move pallets of fresh produce from cold storage to waiting 18-wheel trailers, Greene describes a possible nightmare scenario if there are cuts to SNAP, job losses, and disruptions to the USDA’s emergency food assistance programs. —Rosa Flores, CNN, 11 Mar. 2025

Hundreds of hours of training are required to learn which dials or screens are really important and which are only sort of important, which lights are urgent, and which beep or buzz requires your full attention. —New Atlas, 9 Apr. 2025

Noun

Some also hate the beeps; some have never noticed them. —Kirk Johnson, New Yorker, 23 Apr. 2025

Mark Levine, the sitting beep, is opting out of seeking reelection to instead run for city comptroller. —Josephine Stratman, New York Daily News, 8 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb

from beep-beep, imitative of the sound of a horn, or verbal derivative of beep entry 2

Noun

earlier beep-beep, imitative of the sound of a horn

First Known Use

Verb

1933, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Noun

1943, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for beep

• cheap
• creep
• deep
• heap
• jeep
• keep
• leap
• peep
• reap
• seep
• sheep
• sleep

Kids Definition

beep

noun

ˈbēp

: a sound that signals or warns

beep verb