DictionaryAI

beast

BEEST/biːst/

Pluralbeasts

11 meanings of beast

Practice

  1. 1
    large wild animalnouncountable
    An animal, especially a big or wild one, or animals in general rather than people.

    Like a lion or a bear: a big animal that could hurt you.

    A wild beast roamed through the forest at night.

    Hunters tracked the beast across the open plains.

    Similaranimal, creature

    Note
  2. 2
    monster (creature)nouncountable
    A strange, frightening animal, almost like a monster.

    Like a dragon in a fairy tale.

    The knight rode out to slay the beast terrorizing the village.

    In the old tales, a fire-breathing beast guarded the cave.

    Similarmonster

  3. 3
    difficult thingnouncountable
    A thing or task, especially one that is hard to control.

    Like a machine with too many parts to control.

    This old printer is a stubborn beast that jams every day.

    Government paperwork is a slow, clumsy beast.

    UsageSay this job is a different beast.

    Similaranimal, thing, matter

    Note
  4. 4
    powerful thingnounslangcountable
    A person or thing that is very strong, big, or impressive.

    Like a normal thing built much bigger and stronger.

    That new pickup truck is a real beast.

    The storm was a beast, tearing roofs off houses.

    UsageSay that truck is a beast.

    Similarmonster, powerhouse

    Note
  5. 5
    brutal personnouncountable
    A person who acts in a cruel, wild, or violent way.

    Like a person acting more like a wild animal than a human.

    After a few drinks he turned into a complete beast.

    The guards were beasts, beating prisoners without mercy.

    Similarbrute, animal, savage, monster

  6. 6
    farm animalnouncountable
    A farm animal, especially a cow or an ox.

    Like the cows and oxen kept on a farm.

    The farmer drove his beasts into the barn for the night.

    The farmer sold his best beast at the cattle market.

    Similaranimal

    Note

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of beast apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origin

From Latin bestia meaning "animal," which came into English through Old French beste.

Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts