meat

[ meet ]

noun

1. the flesh of animals as used for food: in particular, mammals, especially livestock and game, and often including poultry and game birds. flesh ( def 1 ), muscle meat ( def ).
2. the edible part of anything, as a fruit or nut:

   Crack the walnuts and remove the meats.

3. the essential point or part of an argument, literary work, etc.; gist; crux:

   The meat of the play is the jealousy between the two brothers.

4. solid food:

   meat and drink.

5. solid or substantial content; pith:

   The article was full of meat, with few wasted words.

6. a favorite occupation, activity, etc.:

   Chess is his meat.

7. Chiefly South Midland and Southern U.S. pork, especially bacon.
8. Slang: Vulgar. penis.
9. Archaic. the principal meal:

   to say grace before meat.

meat

/ miːt /

noun

1. the flesh of mammals used as food, as distinguished from that of birds and fish
2. anything edible, esp flesh with the texture of meat

   crab meat

3. food, as opposed to drink
4. the essence or gist
5. an archaic word for meal 1
6. meat and drink
   a source of pleasure
7. have one's meat and one's manners informal.
   to lose nothing because one's offer is not accepted

Derived Forms

• ˈmeatless, adjective

Other Words From

• meat·less adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of meat¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English mete, met, methe “food, nourishment, sustenance,” Old English mete, mett, “food,” cognate with Old High German maz, Old Norse matr, Gothic mats

Word History and Origins

Origin of meat¹

Old English mete; related to Old High German maz food, Old Saxon meti, Gothic mats

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. piece of meat, Slang: Disparaging and Offensive.
   1. a person regarded merely as a sex object:

      Years after winning a beauty pageant, she denounced the competition, saying she’d been crowned the judges’ favorite piece of meat.

   2. a person, as a prizefighter or laborer, regarded merely as a strong or useful physical specimen:

      The trainer never apologized for referring to his boxers as pieces of meat—if you made it to the top, he’d start calling you “Kid.”

More idioms and phrases containing meat

• beat the meat
• one's man's meat is another man's poison

Example Sentences

Hot dogs, or “meat apples,” as we’ve come to jokingly call them, are a gas station go-to in the remote Faroe Islands.

From Salon

I don’t want the meat, but I want very simple dishes.

From Los Angeles Times

No 10 has apologised after meat and alcohol were served at a Downing Street event to celebrate the festival of Diwali, held last month.

From BBC

"It's like the penny was dropping, the expectation is that you’re there for a job, and actually you’re just there as a potential piece of meat."

From BBC

Except it wasn’t a terrifying beast — it was a person in a bear costume using a kitchen tool designed to shred meat, authorities said.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• food
• foodstuff