Crossword Dictionary

What's The Definition Of Beast?

\Beast\, n. [OE. best, beste, OF. beste, F. b[^e]te, fr. L. bestia.] 1. Any living creature; an animal; -- including man, insects, etc. [Obs.] --Chaucer. 2. Any four-footed animal, that may be used for labor, food, or sport; as, a beast of burden. A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast. --Prov. xii. 10. 3. As opposed to {man}: Any irrational animal. 4. Fig.: A coarse, brutal, filthy, or degraded fellow. 5. A game at cards similar to loo. [Obs.] --Wright. 6. A penalty at beast, omber, etc. Hence: To be beasted, to be beaten at beast, omber, etc. {Beast royal}, the lion. [Obs.] --Chaucer. Syn: {Beast}, {Brute}. Usage: When we use these words in a figurative sense, as applicable to human beings, we think of beasts as mere animals governed by animal appetite; and of brutes as being destitute of reason or moral feeling, and governed by unrestrained passion. Hence we speak of beastly appetites; beastly indulgences, etc.; and of brutal manners; brutal inhumanity; brutal ferocity. So, also, we say of a drunkard, that he first made himself a beast, and then treated his family like a brute.