HOW TO PRONOUNCE
beta
/ˈbeɪtə/
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What does beta mean?
noun
- The second letter of the Greek alphabet (Β, β), preceded by alpha (Α, α) and followed by gamma, (Γ, γ). In modern Greek it represents the voiced labiodental fricative sound of v found in the English words have and vase.
- Average sensitivity of a security's price to overall securities market prices.
- The phase of development after alpha testing and before launch, in which software, while not complete, has been released to potential users for testing.
More meanings (19)
noun
- Software in such a phase; a preliminary version.
- Any kind of content from early development that was not used in the final product.
- Information about a route which may aid someone in climbing it.
- A beta particle or beta ray.
- Sideslip angle.
- The range of engine power settings in which the blade pitch angle of a constant-speed propeller is controlled directly by the angle of the engine's throttle lever (rather than varying with engine torque and airspeed to maintain a constant propeller RPM), allowing the propeller to be disked to generate high drag and slow the aircraft quickly.
- Alternative spelling of betta (“fish in the genus Betta”).
- (slang) Ellipsis of beta male, a man who is less competent or desirable than an alpha male.
- (slang) In omegaverse fiction, a person of a secondary sex similar to normal humans, lacking the biological drives of alphas and omegas but generally capable of bonding and mating with either.
- a term of endearment, used towards someone of equal or lower standing such as a friend or child, similar to brother or son
- A member of Generation Beta.
- (rare) An academic grade better than a gamma and worse than an alpha.
adjective
- Identifying a molecular position in an organic chemical compound.
- Designates the second in an order of precedence.
- Preliminary; prerelease. Refers to an incomplete version of a product released for initial testing.
- Associated with the beta male/female archetype.
verb
- To preliminarily release computer software for initial testing prior to final release.
- To beta-read a text.
proper noun
- Clipping of Betamax
Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0
IPA pronunciation
/ˈbeɪtə/
Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.
In the pages of books
See this word in context.
In every known case the beta Lyrae pairs of stars have spectra of the very early types.
Some of the radium products give out alpha-rays only, one beta- and gamma-rays, while one yields all three types of radiation.
More book examples (2)
The Beta was also sent over to Dunkirk to assist in spotting for artillery fire and locating German batteries on the Belgian coast.
His contemporaries jestingly called him Beta the Second, because he was said through the universality of his attainments to be "a second Plato" in philosophy, "a second Thales" in astronomy, and so on throughout the list.