meat

noun

ˈmēt 

1

a

: food

especially : solid food as distinguished from drink

b

: the edible part of something as distinguished from its covering (such as a husk or shell)

2

: animal tissue considered especially as food:

a

: flesh sense 2b

also : flesh of a mammal as opposed to fowl or fish

b

: flesh sense 1a

specifically : flesh of domesticated animals

3

archaic : meal entry 1 sense 1

especially : dinner

4

a

: the core of something : heart

b

: pith sense 2b

a novel with meat

5

: favorite pursuit or interest

meated

ˈmē-təd 

adjective

meatless adjective

Synonyms

• flesh

Examples of meat in a Sentence

The restaurant serves a variety of meats.

The real meat of the book is found in its discussion of his economic plan.

Recent Examples on the Web

More than lunch and dinner Pork Belly’s Bradenton menu features customer favorites from the Utah restaurants, including tacos, smoked meat sandwiches, burgers, chicken, beef, pork and seafood dishes and salads. —Jason Dill, Miami Herald, 15 Mar. 2025

The body and leg meat can be just as tasty with just a little extra preparation and special recipes. —Peter Burke, Fox News, 14 Mar. 2025

But their enthusiasm doesn’t quite rub off on the customers, who’d rather not chow down green meat. —Marianne Eloise, Vulture, 14 Mar. 2025

In the 17th century, the then-bishop of Quebec declared that beaver meat was acceptable to eat on Fridays during Lent, since the church deemed the semiaquatic rodent a fish, according to Scientific American. —Peter Burke, Fox News, 14 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English mete "food, meal," going back to Old English, going back to Germanic *mati- (whence Old Saxon meti, mat "food," Old High German maz, Old Norse matr, Gothic mats), perhaps going back to Indo-European *mod-i-, derivative of a verbal base *med- "become full," whence Greek mestós "full, satiated"

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing meat

• dark meat
• dead meat
• luncheon meat
• lunch meat
• meat and potatoes
• meat-ax
• meat loaf
• meat market
• meat sweats
• red meat
• variety meat
• white meat

Rhymes for meat

• beat
• beet
• bleat
• cheat
• cleat
• creat
• deet
• eat
• feat
• feet
• fleet
• greet

Kids Definition

meat

noun

ˈmēt 

1

a

: something eaten for nourishment

especially : solid food as distinguished from drink

b

: the edible part of something as distinguished from the covering (as a shell or husk)

walnut meat

2

: animal and especially mammal flesh used as food