beck

IPA/bek/
KK[bˈɛk]IPA/bek/

beck — noun

  • becksingular
  • becksplural

1. a narrow stream of water flowing through hills or fields, especially one found i

1.nounC2
Definition

a narrow stream of water flowing through hills or fields, especially one found in northern England.

Example

Jamal jumped across the shallow beck behind his grandmother's farmhouse in Yorkshire.

regional British noun for a small stream

After two days of rain, the beck running past the village pub burst its banks.

typical collocation: beck burst its banks

Common collocations
  • a moorland beck
  • a beck flows
  • wade across a beck
  • the beck burst its banks
Synonyms
  • brook

    general British term for a small stream, not regional

  • stream

    neutral and most widely understood word

  • creek

    American equivalent; in UK usually means a small inlet

  • rivulet

    literary term for a very small stream

Usage Note

Mainly heard in northern England, especially Yorkshire, Cumbria, and Lancashire. Distinguish from 'brook' (general British term) and 'creek' (the standard American equivalent).

Common Mistakes

We sailed our boat down the beck to the sea.
We sailed our boat down the river to the sea.
a beck is too small and shallow for boats; use river or stream.
Idioms

at somebody’s beck and call

idiom

Always ready to do whatever someone asks, often immediately.

The new intern is at the manager's beck and call all day.

Why should I be at your beck and call every weekend?

beck — idiom

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All five words describe a small flow of water, but they differ in region and register. 'Stream' is the safest, most neutral choice and is understood everywhere. 'Brook' is mainly British and slightly literary, often suggesting a quiet rural setting. 'Beck' is strongly regional — used mostly in northern England, especially Yorkshire and Cumbria — and will sound out of place in everyday speech elsewhere. 'Creek' in American English means roughly the same as a brook, but in British English it usually refers to a narrow inlet of the sea. 'Rivulet' is literary and rare, suggesting something even smaller than a brook. So a Yorkshire farmer might wade across the beck, an American camper across a creek, and a poet across a rivulet.

beck ↗brook ↗stream ↗creek ↗rivulet

Common collocations

Nouns

  • moorland beck
  • village beck

Phrases

  • the beck burst its banks
  • a bridge over the beck

Prepositions

  • across the beck
  • over the beck
  • along the beck

Etymology

Old NorseMiddle EnglishEnglish

Borrowed into English around the 1300s from Old Norse 'bekkr', meaning a small stream. The word entered the language through areas of northern England settled by Norse speakers, which is why it survives today mainly as a regional term in Yorkshire, Cumbria, and other northern counties. Related forms exist in modern Scandinavian languages, such as Swedish 'bäck' and Norwegian 'bekk', all carrying the same basic meaning.