Meaning
- fighting without any purpose.
- going on with making futile attempts.
- keep doing something, even though it is pointless.
- make useless efforts.
- making vain efforts.
- go against an imaginary enemy.
Examples in Sentences
- You are just beating the air if you want to turn him into a good boy.
- Voting is just beating the air; the offices are all alike.
- Trying to cram everything at the last minute is beating the air if you still need to revise it properly.
- He had made up his mind, so convincing him to stay was just beating the air.
- Forgiving a criminal in the hope that he will change is beating the air; he should be in prison.
- The teacher has already marked the papers; trying to turn yours in late is beating the air.
- He will not see through the progressive agenda; he is only beating the air.
Origin
People began using the phrase in the late 1300s. They used it to create a vivid picture of an individual who flails away at nothing. The phrase has gained much literary use over the years. For instance, Hans Christian Andersen used it in " The Bell." In Epistle Sermons, Volume II, Martin Luther also uses it when he says:
"They fail, however, to see they race uncertainly and beat the air."
