beatnik

[ beet-nik ]
See synonyms for beatnik on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. (sometimes initial capital letter) a member of the Beat Generation.

  2. a person who rejects or avoids conventional behavior, dress, etc.

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Origin of beatnik

1
1955–60, Americanism;beat (adj.) (as in Beat Generation) + -nik

Words Nearby beatnik

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use beatnik in a sentence

  • He was far, far different than the laughing, beatnik jabbering, youngster he had always seemed.

    Black Man's Burden | Dallas McCord Reynolds

British Dictionary definitions for beatnik

beatnik

/ (ˈbiːtnɪk) /


noun
  1. a member of the Beat Generation (sense 1)

  2. informal any person with long hair and shabby clothes

Origin of beatnik

1
C20: from beat (n) + -nik, by analogy with Sputnik

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012