meat

meat — noun

1. flesh taken from an animal's body, used as food that people cook and eat

1.nounA1
Definition

flesh taken from an animal's body, used as food that people cook and eat

Example

Marta does not eat meat, so I made a vegetable curry for dinner.

uncountable use — 'eat meat' / 'some meat'

Reuben grilled the meat over charcoal until it was perfectly brown on the outside.

Common collocations
  • fresh meat
  • raw meat
  • cooked meat
  • red meat
  • white meat
  • lean meat
  • tender meat
  • tough meat
Synonyms
  • flesh

    more general term covering any animal or human tissue; 'meat' is only for food

Antonyms
  • vegetable

    plant-based food, opposite of meat in a meal context

Usage Note

Uncountable in this sense — you cannot say 'a meat' when referring to animal flesh in general. 'Meats' (plural) is possible but only means 'types of meat' (see sense 2).

Common Mistakes

I bought a meat at the supermarket.
I bought some meat at the supermarket.
'meat' is uncountable when referring to animal flesh as food.

2. one of the kinds of meat that people eat, for example beef, chicken, or pork

2.nounA2
Definition

one of the kinds of meat that people eat, for example beef, chicken, or pork

Example

Lamb is a tender meat that goes well with rosemary and garlic.

countable use — 'a tender meat' = a type of meat

The menu offers a choice of three meats: chicken, beef, or fish.

Common collocations
  • white meat
  • red meat
  • dark meat
  • lean meat
  • processed meat

Usage Note

Countable only when distinguishing one type from another. In everyday conversation, 'What meat is this?' is more common than 'Which meat is this?' — the uncountable form often works even when asking about types.

3. the valuable or meaningful content at the centre of a speech, argument, or piece

3.nounB2
Definition

the valuable or meaningful content at the centre of a speech, argument, or piece of writing

Example

The first hour of the lecture was jokes, but the real meat came in the second hour.

collocation: 'the meat of' a lecture / argument / report

Ayesha says the meat of the report is in the final chapter about cost savings.

Common collocations
  • the meat of the matter
  • the meat of the argument
  • the meat of the discussion
  • real meat
  • the meat of the report
Synonyms
  • substance

    similar meaning, slightly more formal

  • core

    emphasises the central, essential part

  • gist

    focuses on the general meaning rather than the detailed content

Antonyms
  • padding

    unimportant material added to fill space

Grammar Patterns

the meat of [something]

Common Mistakes

The meat of this issue is very complicated.' (overused in non-native speech)
The heart of this issue is very complicated.
'the meat of the matter' is a fixed collocation; avoid extending it to every abstract noun.

4. the soft, edible part inside a hard shell of a nut, seed, or fruit

4.nounB1
Definition

the soft, edible part inside a hard shell of a nut, seed, or fruit

Example

Sirin cracked the walnut and picked out the meat with a small fork.

uncountable: 'the meat' of a single nut

Coconut meat is white and can be eaten raw or used in baking.

collocation: 'coconut meat'

Common collocations
  • coconut meat
  • walnut meat
  • nut meat
Synonyms
  • flesh

    used more often for fruit than for nuts

  • kernel

    specifically the edible part of a seed or nut inside its shell

Antonyms
  • shell

    the hard outer covering that protects the meat

Usage Note

More common for specific nuts (walnut meat, coconut meat) than for general use. For most fruits, 'flesh' is the preferred term ('the flesh of a peach').

5. something that a person enjoys very much or is naturally well suited to — for ex

5.nounC1
Definition

something that a person enjoys very much or is naturally well suited to — for example, a topic that someone loves to discuss or an activity they excel at

Example

Debating economic policy is Shirin's meat — she can talk about it for hours.

pattern: '[something] is [someone's] meat'

Complex logic puzzles are exactly the kind of meat Rafael enjoys.

Common collocations
  • be someone's meat
  • meat and drink to someone
Synonyms
  • forte

    more formal; focuses on skill rather than enjoyment

  • cup of tea

    more common in modern English; also informal

Grammar Patterns

be [someone's] meat

Usage Note

Slightly dated in modern English. More common in fixed phrases such as 'meat and drink to someone'. For everyday conversation, phrases like 'cup of tea' or 'right up someone's alley' are more natural alternatives.

Idioms

dead meat

idiom

Someone who is in very serious trouble.

If Mom finds out you broke the vase, you're dead meat.

The boss caught him stealing, so now he's dead meat.

easy meat

idiom

A person who is easy to defeat, cheat, or take advantage of.

Scammers often see elderly people as easy meat.

The new player was easy meat for the experienced team.

meat and drink to somebody

idiom

Something that someone really enjoys doing or finds very satisfying.

Solving complex puzzles is meat and drink to Maya.

Debating politics is meat and drink to my grandfather.

one man’s meat is another man’s poison

idiom

What one person likes may be disliked by someone else.

I love horror movies, but my sister hates them—one man's meat is another man's poison.

He finds fishing boring, but his brother loves it; one man's meat is another man's poison.

Word family

  • meaty
    adjectiveB2
  • meatless
    adjectiveB1
  • meat-eating
    adjectiveB2
  • meatiness
    nounC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

'Meat' refers specifically to animal tissue that people cook and eat — the word always carries the sense of food. 'Flesh' is a broader biological term for any soft body tissue, animal or human; it is not usually associated with eating. A grocery store sells 'meat', not 'flesh'. A medical textbook discusses 'flesh wounds', not 'meat wounds'. 'Protein' overlaps when talking about nutrition ('meat is a good source of protein'), but it is an abstract nutrient category that also includes eggs, beans, and tofu — things that are not meat. In everyday speech: 'I don't eat meat' focuses on a food choice, while 'I don't eat animal flesh' sounds clinical, and 'I need more protein' is about nutrients rather than the food itself.

meat ↗flesh ↗protein ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • meat market
  • meat industry
  • meat product
  • meat pie
  • meat grinder
  • meat cleaver
  • meat dish
  • meat lover
  • piece of meat
  • slice of meat
  • type of meat
  • kind of meat

Adverbs

Phrases

  • meat and potatoes
  • meat on the bone
  • cut of meat

Prepositions

Etymology

Proto-GermanicOld EnglishMiddle EnglishModern English

The word 'meat' comes from Old English 'mete', which originally meant 'food' in a very broad sense — any kind of food, not just animal flesh. Over time, the meaning narrowed. By the 14th century, 'meat' had shifted to refer mainly to the edible flesh of animals, while the older meaning survives only in compounds like 'sweetmeat' (candy) and 'mincemeat' (a mixture of dried fruit used in pies).