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beats one's swords into ploughshares

beats one's swords into ploughshares is the third-person singular simple present indicative of beat one's swords into ploughshares.

Meaning of beat one's swords into ploughshares

Verb

beat one's swords into ploughshares (third-person singular simple present beats one's swords into ploughshares, present participle beating one's swords into ploughshares, simple past beat one's swords into ploughshares, past participle beaten one's swords into ploughshares or beat one's swords into ploughshares)

  1. (idiomatic) To refrain from destructive military or paramilitary acts (war, terrorism, etc.) and put energy and resources to peaceful ends that would otherwise go to violence.
    • There are two choices before us: We can beat our plowshares into swords and prepare for war, or we can beat our swords into plowshares and prepare for peace.1947, United States. Congress. House. Committee on Armed Services, Hearings ... on Sundry Legislation Affecting the Naval and Military Establishments, page 171
  2. (literal) To convert military technologies to peaceful civilian applications.
    • And as for “beating our swords into plowshares” in the case of peacetime utilization of actual war implements: The United States Forest Service is testing the Pyrogel (goop) incendiary mixture for burning slash in forest areas. The Chemical Warfare Service in Hawaii is reconverting Napalm...1946, Robert Percy Williams, Military Establishment Appropriation Bill for 1947, page 848

Forms of beats one's swords into ploughshares

alternative formbeats one's swords into plowshares

Questions about beats one's swords into ploughshares

What is beats one's swords into ploughshares the third-person singular simple present indicative of?
Beats one's swords into ploughshares is the third-person singular simple present indicative of beat one's swords into ploughshares.

Words near beats one's swords into ploughshares in the dictionary

  1. beats one's breast
  2. beats one's chest
  3. beats one's face
  4. beats one's head against a stone wall
  5. beats one's meat
  6. beats one's swords into ploughshares
  7. beats one's swords into plowshares
  8. beats out
  9. beats someone at their own game
  10. beats someone round the ears
  11. beats someone's arse

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: beats one's swords into ploughshares (page history and authors); beat one's swords into ploughshares (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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