beat a retreat
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Also, beat a hasty retreat. Reverse course or withdraw, usually quickly. For example, I really don't want to run into Jeff—let's beat a retreat. This term originally (1300s) referred to the military practice of sounding drums to call back troops. Today it is used only figuratively, as in the example above.
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Which of the following nouns has an irregular plural form?
Words nearby beat a retreat
beast of prey, beat, beat a dead horse, beat all, beat a path to someone's door, beat a retreat, beat around the bush, beat back, beatbox, beatboxing, beat down
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
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