deadbeat

1 of 2

noun

dead·​beat ˈded-ˌbēt How to pronounce deadbeat (audio)
1
: loafer
2
: one who persistently fails to pay personal debts or expenses

deadbeat

2 of 2

adjective

: having a pointer that gives a reading with little or no oscillation

Examples of deadbeat in a Sentence

Noun His friends are just a bunch of deadbeats. He was accused of being a deadbeat.
Recent Examples on the Web
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Noun
The Season 4, Part 1 finale contains one whopper of a revelation: JJ’s deadbeat father, Luke, isn’t his real dad. Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 11 Oct. 2024 After a strange meteor crash lands in his backyard and turns his deadbeat father into a brain-eating zombie, Bucky and his friends seize the opportunity to create the ultimate horror flick, starring his undead dad. Patrick Frater, Variety, 13 Sep. 2024
Adjective
In cases where families sued, departments later used the information from those interviews to defend themselves in court, painting the deceased as mentally ill drug addicts and deadbeat parents in part to lower the cost of damages or settlements paid to families. Brian Howey, Los Angeles Times, 12 Mar. 2024 Others may even cheer the hard line against supposedly deadbeat allies who in this view have taken advantage of American friendship for too long. Peter Baker, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2024 See all Example Sentences for deadbeat 

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1863, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

circa 1864, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of deadbeat was in 1863

Dictionary Entries Near deadbeat

Cite this Entry

“Deadbeat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deadbeat. Accessed 30 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

deadbeat

noun
dead·​beat
ˈded-ˌbēt
: one who fails to pay his or her debts

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