"Beat the **** out of somebody"

Posted by Smokey Stover on March 27, 2005

In Reply to: "Beat the **** out of somebody" posted by Bruce Kahl on March 22, 2005

: : hello,I am from HK.
: : Recently ,I' ve heard my friend using such phrase,I'd like to know what does it mean?Does it mean literally?

: It means that somebody is gonna get a really good beating, one that will hurt him immensely.
: And if that beating results in a death then, yes, the excrement built up in his system just may work its way outside the body.

Don't take Bruce Kahl too literally on this one. The "****" part is just an intensifier, no more literally intended than "Beat the hell out of him." It is, or used to be, more dramatic-sounding than "Beat him severely." The figurative use of language can be very cliche-ridden at times. SS