Meaning & use
beat about the bush
Last updated
Meaning
phraseidiominformal
to talk around a subject without getting to the main point, usually because it is awkward or unpleasant
Grammar: Intransitive: it takes no object. Often used in commands like 'Don't beat about the bush' or after 'stop'.
Patterns
- stop beating about the bush
- not beat about the bush
- without beating about the bush
Stop beating about the bush and tell me who broke the window.
She never beats about the bush; if she disagrees, you will know immediately.
The manager beat about the bush for ten minutes before admitting the project had failed.
Word forms
| third person singular | beats about the bush |
|---|---|
| past tense | beat about the bush |
| past participle | beaten about the bush |
| -ing form | beating about the bush |
Common combinations
- stop beating about the bush
- Stop beating about the bush and give me a straight answer.
- not beat about the bush
- I won't beat about the bush: your work is not good enough.
- without beating about the bush
- Without beating about the bush, the answer is no.
- beat about the bush for hours
- They beat about the bush for hours instead of discussing the real problem.
Synonyms and how they differ
- avoid the issue
- More neutral and formal; it states the problem directly rather than using a picture.
- dodge the question
- Used when someone is asked something specific and refuses to answer, not just when they talk vaguely.
- beat around the bush
- The usual American version of this idiom; the meaning is the same.
Opposites
Commonly confused: beat about the bush or beat around the bush?
beat about the bush vs beat around the bush
This is the American form of the same idiom; 'about' is more common in British English.
Practice
Don't beat ______ the bush — just tell me what happened.
Choose one answer.
In British English the fixed idiom uses 'about'. 'Around' is the American variant and is also correct in American English, but in a British English test the expected answer is 'about'. 'On' and 'over' do not form this idiom.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “beat about the bush”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.