beat one's chest
Flaunt one's strength
To beat one's chest is to make a show of strength, dominance, or emotional intensity—like a gorilla's display.
The phrase usually describes boastful or aggressive posturing: Politicians beat their chests about being tough on crime.
It can also suggest exaggerated grief or self-reproach: There's no point beating your chest over past mistakes.
- poundWeight, strike, or kennel
- heartCirculatory system's pump
- penitenceRemorse for misdeeds
- bravadoPretense of fearlessness
- strikingNoticeably impressive
grief · self-aggrandizement · sore winner · confession · remorse · mourning · theatricality · public display · thump · defiance · show of force · machismo · jubilation · gorilla · slapping · triumph · victory lap · tapping
beat one's chestkeep a low profile
Remain unnoticed deliberately
fly under the radar · blend in · hide one's light under a bushel · keep one's head down
beat, beats, beaten, beating, beater, ones, chest, chests, chested