Definition of "beatnik" [beat•nik]

• A person, especially a member or follower of the Beat Generation, whose behavior, views, and often style of dress are pointedly unconventional. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "In the collective mind of the general public, the word beatnik became synonymous with juvenile delinquent."
• "In a North Beach bar one day, Caen happened to overhear poet Bob Kaufman playfully invent the word beatnik."
• "Although he never embraced the word beatnik, he never failed to identify himself and his friends as members of the Beat Generation."