verb phrase🎓 English idiom

beat around the bush

to avoid the main point

What it means

To avoid talking about something directly, approaching the main point in a roundabout or evasive way. It's often used to urge someone to be honest and get to the point.

Examples

  • Stop beating around the bush and tell me what happened.
  • He beat around the bush for ages before admitting he was leaving.
  • Instead of beating around the bush, just ask for a raise.
  • She tends to beat around the bush when the news is bad.

Where it comes from

From medieval hunting, where helpers beat the bushes around the edges to flush out birds rather than going straight for them. The figurative sense of approaching indirectly dates back centuries.

Related idioms

#cut to the chase#long story short#read between the lines#play devil's advocate

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