Beat Someone to the Punch.
English
idiom
To do something just before someone else does.
Trusted by1.5M+English learners & teachers worldwide
To do something just before someone else does.
Trusted by1.5M+English learners & teachers worldwide
To do something just before someone else does the same thing.
Beating someone to the punch is about timing, not quality — you both had the idea, and one moved first.
It comes from boxing, where the first hit decides the exchange.
"Steal Someone's Thunder"
—
Take the attention their news deserved
"Jump the Gun"
—
Act too early, before you should
"Beat Someone to the Punch"
—
Act just before someone else does
If we announce Thursday we beat them to the punch by a week.
Then Thursday it is. Get legal to look at it this afternoon.
I was going to text you about the tickets.
I beat you to the punch — they're already booked for both of us.
Did you get the apartment you wanted?
Someone beat us to the punch by a single morning.
