Beatnik Definition
bētnĭk
beatniks
noun
beatniks
A person, especially a member or follower of the Beat Generation, whose behavior, views, and often style of dress are pointedly unconventional.
American Heritage
A member of a group of young persons, esp. of the 1950s, rebelling against conventional attitudes, dress, speech, etc., largely as an expression of social disillusionment.
Webster's New World
A person who dresses in a manner that is not socially acceptable and whose manner of dress reflects a rejection of conventional norms of thought and behavior; nonconformist in dress and behavior.
Wiktionary
A person associated with the Beat Generation of the 1950s and 1960s or its style.
Wiktionary
Other Word Forms of Beatnik
Noun
Singular:
beatnikPlural:
beatniksOrigin of Beatnik
-
Coined by San Francisco columnist Herb Caen in 1958. From beat (generation) + cutesy or ironic use of the Russian suffix -ник (-nik). This suffix experienced a surge in English coinages for nicknames and diminutives after the 1957 Soviet launch of the Sputnik satellite. Compare jazznik.
From Wiktionary
Beat (Generation) –nik
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
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