Idiom
Beat the Heat: Origin and Meaning
Meaning
Finding a place to feel cool when it’s so hot outside.
Origin
Used since the 1400s, beating the heat originally meant “beating the opponent”. I other words, if you manage to escape, you won. This idea of escaping also seeped into its metaphorical meaning, and by the early 1500s it started being used in connection with extreme summer weather conditions. If you escaped the heat, you would move to a cooler place and therefore, survive.
Used since the 1400s, beating the heat originally meant “beating the opponent”. I other words, if you manage to escape, you won. This idea of escaping also seeped into its metaphorical meaning, and by the early 1500s it started being used in connection with extreme summer weather conditions. If you escaped the heat, you would move to a cooler place and therefore, survive.
Examples
We are going to beat the heat by sitting in the shade all day.
Thank goodness I’ve got a good air conditioner to beat the heat!
Boy is it hot! There’s nothing better than a cool dip in the pool to beat the heat!
Thank goodness I’ve got a good air conditioner to beat the heat!
Boy is it hot! There’s nothing better than a cool dip in the pool to beat the heat!
