as in to repel
to drive back
the defense managed to beat off those offensive players who were taking shots at the goalie
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Recent Examples of beat off
He regularly gets beat off the bounce by quicker players.
—
Sam Vecenie, New York Times, 2 Mar. 2026
The dogs had driven the woman into the surf before a tourist came to her rescue, beating off the dingoes.
—CBS News, 28 Jan. 2026
Chip Somodevilla/Pool Photo via AP What To Know Obama beat off stiff competition from the likes of David Attenborough and Tom Hanks to win the Outstanding Narrator prize for his narration of the five-part Netflix series Our Oceans, which examines marine life across the world's oceans.
—Daniel Orton, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
In 2024, it was given to Netflix France series Class Act, which beat off competition from huge hits like The Bear, Beef and Succession.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 5 Aug. 2025
Breathing problems which sent my heart beat off the charts.
—David Velasco, Harpers Magazine, 18 Dec. 2023
Sam Vecenie, New York Times, 2 Mar. 2026
The dogs had driven the woman into the surf before a tourist came to her rescue, beating off the dingoes.
—CBS News, 28 Jan. 2026
Chip Somodevilla/Pool Photo via AP What To Know Obama beat off stiff competition from the likes of David Attenborough and Tom Hanks to win the Outstanding Narrator prize for his narration of the five-part Netflix series Our Oceans, which examines marine life across the world's oceans.
—Daniel Orton, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
In 2024, it was given to Netflix France series Class Act, which beat off competition from huge hits like The Bear, Beef and Succession.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 5 Aug. 2025
Breathing problems which sent my heart beat off the charts.
—David Velasco, Harpers Magazine, 18 Dec. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for beat off
Verb
-
In drills, Taiwan has rehearsed repelling a seaborne assault with drones, fast patrol craft, mobile Hsiung Feng anti-ship missiles and Marine Corps teams.—
Micah McCartney,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Apr. 2026
-
The housekeeping team fogs the balés every week to keep most of the biting insects at bay, and gardens teeming with mosquito-repelling lemongrass and zodia plants help keep them at a distance.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Against a backdrop of social and geopolitical change, amid profound transformation both in Georgia and across the South Caucasus, their stories reveal how the will to dream, to resist, and to love becomes its own quiet blaze.—
Leo Barraclough,
Variety,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Serious worm farmers will want to invest in some worm food to ensure their nightcrawlers get the perfect balance of protein, carbohydrates, fat, vitamins, and minerals to create a plump, tasty bait that no self-respecting fish can resist.—
Joe Cermele,
Outdoor Life,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Because being with their own thoughts, emotions and bodily sensations can be so difficult, people often turn away from them.—
J. David Creswell,
The Conversation,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Still, Brooks’s turn away from politics and toward a more therapeutic project has not been wholly unhelpful.—
Becca Rothfeld,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The aircraft, carrying a flight instructor and student pilot, had climbed to roughly 1,700 feet before turning back toward the airport.—
Stephen Sorace,
FOXNews.com,
1 Apr. 2026
-
An American journalist who was kidnapped in Baghdad had tried to cross from Syria into Iraq three weeks earlier and was initially turned back, an Iraqi official said Wednesday.—
Qassim Abdul-Zahra,
Los Angeles Times,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Sigmund Freud believed that every crush has a strand of disgust, that people are attracted to what repulses them.—
Daniel Felsenthal,
Vulture,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Cilantro, a polarizing herb that’s either adored in Mexican, Southeast Asian, and Indian cuisines, or repulsed by those who detect a nauseating soapy taste.—
Catharine Kaufman,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
20 Mar. 2026
Verb
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In order to stave off potentially bruising losses in November, Republicans of all persuasions are working to get on the same messaging page to pitch voters on why their party should stay fully in power over the next few years.—
Zachary Schermele,
USA Today,
28 Mar. 2026
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And this was on a night when Doncic scored 41 points on 15-of-25 shooting (5 for 10 from 3-point range) as the Lakers staved off the Brooklyn Nets, finally pulling away for a 116-99 win on Friday night, their 11th victory in 12 games.—
Benjamin Royer,
Oc Register,
28 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Beat off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/beat%20off. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
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