beat you to the punch - what does it mean?

Question

he called atlanta and must havebeat you to the punch.many thanks,angel.

BarbaraPA · Accepted Answer

It means that the person did something before the other person had a chance to do the same thing.

Marius Hancu · Answer

this is how to look for an idiom

at Yahoo
type in
Search the Web:
"beat someone to the punch" dictionary
or
"beat someone to the punch" idiom
(the quotations are important)
click Search
you will get several dictionaries describing this idiom

including:

beat someone to the punch (American)
to do something before someone else does it.
--I was thinking of applying for that job but Carol beat me to the punch.
http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/punch

Darkangel38 · Answer

thank you!<img class='emoticon' style='Width:19px;Height:19px;' data-delaysrc='https://uat-englishforward-forums-backend.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Emoticons/1.gif' src='https://uat-englishforward-forums-backend.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Emoticons/1.gif' alt='Emotion: smile'/>

Walah · Answer

Thank u all

4 those information

BarbaraPA · Answer

Walah, you're welcome, but please note that information is singular and you should use that instead of those.

Thank you all

For that information

Anonymous · Answer

where did it originate?

Anonymous · Answer

I had an epiphany about this today on my morning run.... I believe that it may have originated in comedy, where two comedians are bantering and one beats the other to the punchline making the other the **** of the joke.

beat you to the punch - what does it mean?

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