broad in the beam
1. Of a ship, particularly wide in the middle. Since that ship is broad in the beam, I doubt it will fit through the narrow channel. I'm pretty inexperienced—can I really steer a ship that's broad in the beam like this? You think this is broad in the beam? Ha, this is practically a dinghy compared to a real ship!
2. Of a person, having an ample buttocks. Because I'm broad in the beam, I doubt those pants will fit me. He's a professional athlete—why are you surprised that he's broad in the beam and has legs like tree trunks? I'm a bit broad in the beam after weeks of eating holiday treats.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
broad in the beam
1. Lit. [of a ship] wide at amidships. This old tub is broad in the beam and sits like a ball in the water, but I love her.
2. Fig. Inf. with wide hips or large buttocks. l am getting a little broad in the beam. It's time to go on a diet. John is just naturally broad in the beam.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
broad in the beam
Having broad hips or large buttocks. For example, I've grown too broad in the beam for these slacks. This expression originated in the 17th century and described the wideness of a ship. It began to be used for the human body only in the 1920s.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
broad in the beam
wide in the hips. informal A beam was one of the horizontal transverse timbers in a wooden ship, and so the word came to refer to a ship's breadth at its widest point. It is from this sense that the current meaning of broad in the beam developed.
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
broad in the ˈbeam
(informal) having wide hips: Her waist is quite small, but she’s rather broad in the beam.Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
broad in the beam
Having wide hips. This unflattering description, nearly always of a woman’s build, transfers the nautical description of a ship. Lexicographer J. E. Lightner quotes an 1836 issue of Spirit of Times, “Ned Curtis had a wife, a strapping craft, broad in the beam, with a high stern. . . .” It may be dying out.
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer