Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner's English Dictionary - beat up

1. If someone beats a person up, they hit or kick the person many times. Then they actually beat her up as well... The government supporters are beating up anyone they suspect of favouring the demonstrators. PHRASAL VERB: V n P, V P n (not pron) 2. If you beat yourself up about something, you worry about it a lot or blame yourself for it. (INFORMAL) Tell them you don’t want to do it any more. Don’t beat yourself up about it... I don’t beat myself up. I don’t deal with things I can’t handle. PHRASAL VERB: V pron-refl P prep, V pron-refl P • beating-up (beatings-up) There had been no violence, no beatings-up until then. N-COUNT