# beat a dead horse

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/beat-a-dead-horse
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

To persist or continue far beyond any purpose, interest or reason.

## Examples

- Stop arguing — you're beating a dead horse.
- I do not want to beat a dead horse by repeating my advice.
- She kept complaining about the old policy, but everyone knew she was beating a dead horse.
- The team already decided to cancel the project, so bringing up the budget again is just beating a dead horse at this point.
- The senator continued to demand an investigation long after the evidence had been dismissed, and even his allies agreed he was beating a dead horse.

## Origin

The origin of 'beat a dead horse' comes from the mid-19th century, when the practice of beating horses to make them go faster was often viewed as acceptable. To beat a dead horse would be pointless, as it wouldn't be able to go anywhere. An early written form of this popular idiom appears in an 1859 issue of the London paper Watchman and Wesleyan Advertiser: "It was notorious that Mr. Bright was dissatisfied with his winter reform campaign, and rumour said that he had given up his effort with the exclamation that it was like flogging a dead horse."

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.