meat

American  

[meet] / mit /

noun

• meats
  plural

1. the flesh of animals as used for food: in particular, mammals, especially livestock and game, and often including poultry and game birds.

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.

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idioms

1. piece of meat,

   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.”

meat British  

/ 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. a source of pleasure

7. informal to lose nothing because one's offer is not accepted

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meat More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing meat

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

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• meatless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• meats
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of meat

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

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Explanation

Use meat to mean any food that comes from the flesh of an animal. Bacon is meat. Cupcakes are not meat. You can refer to hamburgers, pork chops, and barbecued ribs as meat. It's okay to call chicken and turkey meat too, although formally it's known as poultry, while the flesh of fish is simply called fish. Sometimes the edible part of a nut is also called meat, although it's 100 percent vegetarian. If your grandmother thinks you're too skinny, she may feed you "to put some meat on your bones." In Old English, mete was just "food."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

meat meats

Everything from gasoline, diesel fuel and heating oil to rubber, sugar, meat, dairy products and shoes were rationed for the duration of the war.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026

“Vegetarians can benefit from creatine supplementation because they’re not consuming the foods that have higher amounts of creatine, like red meat and salmon, which have 1-2 grams per pound.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 19, 2026

Residents of a small south Scotland village say they fear losing their "quiet life" after work started on a £24m meat processing plant nearby.

From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2026

They do not establish a specific risk threshold or indicate how much meat can be considered safe.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 18, 2026

The men of the Advance survived on salty dried meat and tinned vegetables.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

The analysis included a broad range of red meats, such as beef, lamb, pork, rabbit, goat, and game.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 18, 2026

This professional chef used to cook for private events, and specialised in smoked meats.

From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026

That’s another misunderstanding: We were hawking game, as we like to make a little cash on the side selling rare meats.

From Slate ● Oct. 3, 2026

They have a great all-you-can-eat menu with really great meats and an assortment of sauces and condiments.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026

He methodically peels off the shells, piling the meats on a leaf.

From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins

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Related Words

• food
• foodstuff

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