beat to quarters

English

Etymology

See beat (“to signal beating a drum”)

Verb

beat to quarters (third-person singular simple present beats to quarters, present participle beating to quarters, simple past beat to quarters, past participle beaten to quarters)

1. (intransitive, nautical) To summon the crew of a sailing man-of-war to their stations for action against an enemy. In the Royal Navy the drums were beaten to the rhythm of Heart of Oak.

Related terms

• beat a retreat

See also

• battle stations