beat a retreat

verb

To leave hastily in the face of opposition.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

verbbeat a retreat (third-person singular simple present beats a retreat, present participle beating a retreat, simple past beat a retreat, past participle beaten a retreat)

present singular third person beats a retreat · participle present beating a retreat · participle past beaten a retreat · alternative beat retreat

  1. idiomaticinformalTo leave hastily in the face of opposition.

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
beat itfleegethightail itretreatroll back

Origin

See beat (“to signal beating a drum”).

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

beat a retreat. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/beat%20a%20retreat

MLA

“beat a retreat.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/beat%20a%20retreat. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “beat a retreat,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/beat%20a%20retreat.

Source: beat a retreat on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.