From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishbeat a (hasty) retreatbeat a (hasty) retreatto leave somewhere or stop doing something very quickly, in order to avoid a bad situation He beat a hasty retreat when he spotted me. → beat
Examples from the Corpus
beat a (hasty) retreat• Any females which are not ripe will either stay away or beat a hasty retreat.• Objects and fantasy are then used not as a means of venturing out, but to beat a retreat.• They were forced to beat a hasty retreat and arrived at their rendezvous with Morris's patrol on time.• With decks awash with diesel we beat a hasty retreat back to Lerwick.• Then, thanking him, I beat a hasty retreat to the sacristy door and knocked.• He beat a hasty retreat when he spotted me approaching, but it was not hasty enough.• Appointees interviewed repeated a familiar theme: They all loved their jobs but are beating a retreat without regret. 