Noun (2)
when we were lads, we raced our toy boats in the narrow beck that bordered the lane
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Although Le Majestic has everything at your beck and call, the city of Cannes is magical.—Martie Bowser, Essence, 16 May 2024 As Season Three begins, Ava has found a successful niche as a writer on a Last Week Tonight-esque topical comedy show, and things are going well with actress girlfriend Ruby (Lorenza Izzo) now that Ava has grown up ever so slightly, and no longer has to be at Deborah’s beck and call.—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 2 May 2024 Punishment for not showing up for a call-back or a missing bottle may include having take-home doses reduced or rescinded entirely, leaving patients constantly at their clinics’ beck and call.—Lev Facher, STAT, 12 Mar. 2024 Others echoed that being a salaried employee doesn’t equate to being at the beck and call of your boss.—Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 30 Jan. 2024 The gentle pressure relieves tension in the beck while relaxing uptight muscles.—Cristina Montemayor, Men's Health, 14 Apr. 2022 Fleet managers, as they are called, are technically their own bosses, but John spends his days at the beck and call of the company’s app.—Amy Martyn, WIRED, 21 Dec. 2023 One reason involved marketing: Ms. Swift, with 369 million social media followers at her beck and call, barely needs to spend anything to advertise the film.—Brooks Barnes, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2023 Of course, Fox, a mom of three herself, has professional hair stylists at her beck and call, while the mortal moms among us are stuck attempting to copy the look.—Melissa Willets, Parents, 15 Sep. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'beck.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Verb
Middle English bekken, shortened from bekenen "to give a mute signal," with the n perhaps being taken as the infinitive ending — more at beckon
Noun (1)
Middle English becke, bekke "mute signal, signal of command, bow," noun derivative of bekken "to give a mute signal" — more at beck entry 1
Noun (2)
Middle English bek, from Old Norse bekkr; akin to Old English bæc brook, Old High German bah, Lithuanian bėgti to flee — more at phobia
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