beat the air

Idioms

Also, beat the wind. Continue to make futile attempts, fight to no purpose. For example, The candidates for office were so much alike that we thought our vote amounted to beating the air. These phrases call up a vivid image of someone flailing away at nothing. [Late 1300s]

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.

Helicopters beat the air, and the buzz of chain saws echoed from the canyons.

From Washington Times • Oct. 28, 2019

Their slender limbs beat the air in rage and frustration.

From Newsweek • Aug. 13, 2012

Though he "beat the air wildly" he flew only 30 or 40 ft. before flumping to earth.

From Time Magazine Archive

Like an airplane gaining altitude, the prominent nose tilts skyward; the hands beat the air in preparation for flight.

From Time Magazine Archive

And the gander opened his strong wings and beat the air with them to show his power.

From "Charlotte's Web" by E.B. White

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