Beat about the bush

Meaning:

• When you beat about/around the bush, you avoid answering a question, avoid talking about a difficult or embarrassing subject, or speak indirectly.
• It also means to stall or to waste time.

Example sentence:

There's no need to beat about the bush. Just answer my question and we can go on.



Questions for you to answer:

1. Do you tend to beat about the bush when discussing embarrassing matters?
2. When somebody keeps beating about the bush, do you stop them or listen patiently till they tell you what's on their mind?
3. Why do you think politicians often tend to beat about the bush?