# walk the beat

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/walk-the-beat
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

To patrol on the job, especially as a police officer or guard.

## Examples

- The officer walks the beat in this neighborhood every morning.
- The new officer was nervous on his first day as he began to walk the beat in the city center.
- Having walked the beat for over twenty years, the veteran sergeant knew every shopkeeper and alleyway in the district by heart.

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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.