noun
beatnik
BEET-nihk
noun
1
A member of the nonconformist Beat Generation of the 1950s and 60s, known for rejecting mainstream values in dress, art, and lifestyle.
"The café was once a hangout for poets and beatniks."
How to Use Beatnik
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA member (or in the style) of the 1950s counterculture associated with poets like Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac.
Word Forms
beatniks plural, beatniki plural
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Etymology
Coined in 1958 by columnist Herb Caen, blending "beat" (as in Beat Generation) with the Russian-derived suffix "-nik" — the same suffix popularised by "Sputnik."