Learn English – Meaning of “beaten by life”

idiomsphrasal-verbs

"They were not like the prostitutes in old desi films, buffeted and beaten by life"
Sorry I know I used a term here that isn't appropriate but I need to know the meaning here.
And I'd like to know if this is an actual phrasal verb or an expression? Could someone please elaborate it more by using this in a few more sentences?

Best Answer

Starting with an unofficial definition:

To be beaten by life: Suffering so many bad experiences that you give up trying to struggle for a better life.

Here're a few more examples:

  1. Worn out, exhausted, and beaten by life, the homeless man lay down in the snow and accepted his fate
  2. I've never seen someone so melancholy, so beaten by life, to stay in bed when their friends are knocking at their door
  3. I feel beaten by life, I've thrown in the towel and will accept whatever happens to me.

"Throw in the towel" is another idiom. When boxers are losing a match and have no hope of winning, their coaches will throw a towel into the ring to stop the match and accept defeat on behalf of their boxers.

It can be used as an exaggeration, you might not feel bad enough to be truly beaten by life, but you might say it in a cheerful way during a conversation:

"How are you John?"

"Poor, downtrodden, and beaten by life. But otherwise I'm pretty good! How are you?"

Here it's used ironically, John isn't unhappy enough for his friend to be worried. He might feel a little bit tired and annoyed at his job, so he'll say he's "beaten by life".

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