: a steady pronounced rhythm stressing the second and fourth beats of a four-beat measure
Examples of backbeat in a Sentence
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An insistent backbeat kept Fantasy of a Broken Heart lively and muscular, but the off-center guitars provided an appealingly sour counterpoint that lent a sense of surprise to this group’s version of pop.
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Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rolling Stone, 16 Mar. 2025
The lyrics are complemented by a southern rock backbeat and swampy slide guitar that give the whole thing a chill vibe.
—Josh Crutchmer, Rolling Stone, 27 Feb. 2025
The ascent from quiet guitar picking to soul backbeat to power chords feels inevitable but satisfying.
—Jon Pareles, New York Times, 24 Jan. 2025
Advertisement What had been the backbeat of a bygone epoch, the waltz amazingly survived in the 20th century.
—Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 31 Dec. 2024
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Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rolling Stone, 16 Mar. 2025
The lyrics are complemented by a southern rock backbeat and swampy slide guitar that give the whole thing a chill vibe.
—Josh Crutchmer, Rolling Stone, 27 Feb. 2025
The ascent from quiet guitar picking to soul backbeat to power chords feels inevitable but satisfying.
—Jon Pareles, New York Times, 24 Jan. 2025
Advertisement What had been the backbeat of a bygone epoch, the waltz amazingly survived in the 20th century.
—Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 31 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for backbeat
Cite this Entry
“Backbeat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/backbeat. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.
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backbeat
noun
back·beat
-ˌbēt 
: a steady pronounced rhythm stressing the second and fourth beats of a four-beat measure
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