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
-
The attack took place less than 24 hours after the Nigerian military repelled attacks by militants on the outskirts of Maiduguri, in what some residents say could have been planned as a distraction.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
18 Mar. 2026
-
Monday’s attack took place less than 24 hours after the Nigerian military repelled attacks by militants outside Maiduguri.—
Greg Wehner,
FOXNews.com,
17 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The clash comes as tensions escalate between Anthropic and the Defense Department, which has resisted placing restrictions on AI use and recently barred contractors from working with the company, prompting a lawsuit from Anthropic on First Amendment grounds.—
Sharon Goldman,
Fortune,
19 Mar. 2026
-
Who could resist a comedy featuring tiny, creepily cute monsters?—
Fleurine Tideman,
Glamour,
19 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Opponents say that provision could potentially scare workers into turning away valid applicants while also discouraging people from working or volunteering at polling locations.—
Mary Clare Jalonick,
Chicago Tribune,
17 Mar. 2026
-
Precinct-only system turned away hundreds of voters March 3.—
Dallas Morning News,
Dallas Morning News,
17 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The community has been divided over whether or not to turn back on the cameras.—
Sierra Lopez,
Mercury News,
18 Mar. 2026
-
Zelenskyy was asked to return the statue once his country had turned back the ongoing Russian invasion.—
Brian Niemietz,
New York Daily News,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
After a disastrous trip to Mexico where Irina appeared repulsed by pretty much everything Zack did, the couple split and Zack crawled back to Bliss.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
12 Mar. 2026
-
Charlie, though, is trying to keep them out of a country that thoroughly repulses him.—
Alexander Nazaryan,
New Yorker,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Although there are treatments that can stave off progression, there is no cure for MS.—
Kaitlin Sullivan,
NBC news,
15 Mar. 2026
-
McCarthy stood on his head for much of the final 25 minutes, staving off 17 shots through the third period and first overtime.—
Tom Mulherin,
Boston Herald,
15 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Beat off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/beat%20off. Accessed 22 Mar. 2026.
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