beef
Americannoun
plural
beeves, beefs-
the flesh of a cow, steer, or bull raised and killed for its meat.
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an adult cow, steer, or bull raised for its meat.
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Informal.
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brawn; muscular strength.
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strength; power.
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weight, as of a person.
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human flesh.
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Slang.
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a complaint.
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an argument or dispute.
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verb (used without object)
verb phrase
noun
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the flesh of various bovine animals, esp the cow, when killed for eating
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an adult ox, bull, cow, etc, reared for its meat
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informal human flesh, esp when muscular
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a complaint
verb
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slang (intr) to complain, esp repeatedly
he was beefing about his tax
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informal to strengthen; reinforce
Other Word Forms
- beefless adjective
Etymology
Origin of beef
First recorded in 1250–1300; 1885–90 beef for def. 5; Middle English, from Anglo-French beof, Old French boef, from Latin bov- (stem of bōs ) “ox, cow”; akin to cow 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Have you seen the price of a skirt steak, or even ground beef these days?
From Barron's
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's ruling party has approved plans to beef up the country's intelligence capability, a party official said Friday, as the premier pushes ahead with a defence overhaul.
From Barron's
As Elisha sourced a crew and supplies for his upcoming Arctic expedition, “examining recruits, inventing cooking stoves, pricing rounds of beef,” he was often on the road.
From Literature
Fewer than one-third of business leaders say they plan to beef up their workforce anytime soon.
From MarketWatch
The company said its sales growth and operational improvements allowed it to maintain profitability “despite macroeconomic headwinds and higher beef costs.”
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
