# meat

/ˈmit/ (US) · /mˈiːt/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/meat
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. animal flesh for food

noun · CEFR A1

the flesh of an animal that people eat.

For teachers: the flesh of an animal, typically muscle tissue, consumed as food. Uncountable in its general sense.

- We decided to stop eating meat and became vegetarians last year.
- The chef insisted on sourcing organic meat from local farms to ensure the highest quality for the restaurant's signature dishes.

### 2. the core or substance

noun · CEFR B2 · Informal

the most important or interesting part of something, like a story or an idea.

For teachers: the most substantial or essential part of an idea, argument, or piece of writing.

- The first few pages were boring, but then I got to the meat of the story.
- After twenty minutes of polite introductions, the negotiators finally reached the meat of the contract regarding intellectual property rights.

### 3. part of a fruit or nut

noun · CEFR B2

the thick, solid part of a fruit or nut that you can eat.

For teachers: the edible, fleshy part of a fruit, nut, or seed, as distinguished from the shell or skin.

- It took a long time to crack the coconut and get to the white meat inside.
- The recipe requires you to scoop out the meat of the avocado and mash it with lime juice and salt.

### 4. sweet spot of a bat

noun · CEFR C1 · Informal

the best part of a bat or club to hit a ball with.

For teachers: the sweet spot or most effective hitting area of a sports implement such as a cricket bat or baseball bat.

- He hit the ball right on the meat of the bat and it flew over the fence.
- The batsman timed the delivery perfectly, catching it on the meat of the blade to send the ball racing toward the boundary.

### 5. penis

noun · CEFR C2 · Slang · Vulgar

a very informal and sometimes rude word for a penis.

For teachers: a slang term for the penis. Often carries a vulgar or highly informal connotation.

- The teenagers were making crude jokes about meat in the locker room.
- The script was criticized for its reliance on low-brow humor and frequent references to 'meat' that many viewers found offensive.

### 6. food in general

noun · CEFR C2 · Archaic · Dialect

an old word for any kind of solid food.

For teachers: solid food in general, as distinguished from drink. Now largely restricted to fixed idioms or specific dialects.

- In the old story, the traveler asked the innkeeper for some meat and drink.
- The archaic usage of 'meat' to describe any solid nourishment is still evident in certain rural dialects and seventeenth-century literature.

Usage: Commonly survives in the proverb 'one man's meat is another man's poison'.

## Examples

- I do not eat meat because I am a vegetarian.
- The chef seasoned the meat with salt and pepper before placing it on the hot grill.
- While global consumption of red meat remains high, there is a growing market for plant-based alternatives that mimic the texture and flavour of traditional animal products.

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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.