Beef - Definition, Meaning & Synonyms (original) (raw)
Other forms: beeves; beefed; beefing; beefs
Beef is meat from a cow. It's also a word for a complaint. If you have a beef with someone, you’re not sharing a steak, you have a gripe. Just don’t beef to a cow; her problems are worse.
Beef is a type of meat from cattle. If you've ever had a hamburger, you've had beef. The word beef comes from the Old French word buef, which became the word for basically, cow meat. Beef is to cow as pork is to pig or mutton is to sheep. On the other hand, if you have a beef with someone, you have a complaint. Beefing is expressing such feelings.
Definitions of beef
- noun
meat from an adult domestic bovine
see moresee less
types:
pastrami
highly seasoned cut of smoked beef
type of:
meat
the flesh of animals (including fishes and birds and snails) used as food - noun
cattle that are reared for their meat
see moresee less
types:
[Santa Gertrudis](/dictionary/Santa Gertrudis)
Brahman and shorthorn crossbreed of red cattle; hardy in hot regions
Charolais
large white or cream-colored breed from France
Galloway
breed of hardy black chiefly beef cattle native to Scotland
Hereford, whiteface
hardy English breed of dairy cattle raised extensively in United States
beefalo, cattalo
hardy breed of cattle resulting from crossing domestic cattle with the American buffalo; yields leaner beef than conventional breeds - noun
informal terms for objecting
DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘beef'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback