beach read

American

[beech reed] / ˈbitʃ ˌrid /

noun

a book, usually fiction, that one might enjoy during a vacation or a day at the beach because it is engaging, entertaining, and easy to read.

We rarely share our beach reads up at the lake house—as a rule, mine are romances and hers are detective stories.

Etymology

Origin of beach read

First recorded in 1985–90

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

beach read

While not as good as Season 1, it’s still bingeable, ridiculous fun, basically TV’s version of a beach read.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 31, 2026

The top seller on Wednesday’s list was Elin Hilderbrand’s latest beach read, “The Five-Star Weekend”; followed by Bonnie Garmus’ popular debut novel “Lessons in Chemistry” and Ali Hazelwood’s comic romance “Love, Theoretically.”

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 28, 2023

We are truly past the marketing heyday of the beach read, and thank the publishing gods for that.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 10, 2023

"I was ecstatic that it's been described as an elevated beach read."

From Salon ● May 3, 2023

This is a country that will turn any book into a beach read.

From New York Times ● Dec. 7, 2022

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023