Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. someone who is facing certain death; also in fig. use.

1865		H.L. Williams Joaquin 44: ‘Drop your belts on the ground, or you’re dead meat!’ roared Garcia.
1955		‘Hal Ellson’ ‘I Didn’t See a Thing’ in Tell Them Nothing (1956) 135: If that Mr. Quiet catches us we’re dead meat.
1969		M. Puzo Godfather 94: Sollozzo is dead meat.
1986		S. King It (1987) 227: If a car had been coming he would have been dead meat.
1993		G. Disher Deathdeal [ebook] ‘Your looks, you’re dead meat, fuckin’ A’.
1993		T. Jones Pugilist at Rest 14: He was dead meat and he had to know it. It was very strange that he wasn’t hit immediately.
2002		T. Dorsey Triggerfish Twist (2002) You and that scrawny kid of yours – dead meat!

2. a corpse.

1887		L.A. Dly Herald 22 Nov. 7/2: [He] wished he had once more his youthful vigor, and his once trusty sword that he might make dead meat of the obnoxious Teuton.
1894		Truth (Sydney) 22 July 1/5: Some Chinese in Maoriland wanted to convey a countryman’s corpse some distance by rail. [...] In vain the Chinkies wanted their dead meat taken along at ordinary luggage rates.
1901		Bulletin (Sydney) 26 Jan. 32/2: [T]he first of ’em as scratches his nose ’ll be dead meat. March, you gallows-birds, march!
1901		Nebraska Advertiser 5 July 4/2: [I] ended by playfully promising to make dead meat of the first one that should spring another accident on Hays.
1901		Lincs. Chron. 27 Sept. 3/4: The fourth man remained on guard [...] levelling his revolver at them and threatening to make ‘dead meat’ of them.
1903		Cameron Co. Press (Emporium, PA) 24 Dec. 6/3: If he were in too great a haste to make [...] ‘dead meat’ of me, he would have no other opportunity of obtaining the information.
1937–84		Partridge DSUE (1984) 295/1: from ca. 1860.
1945		‘Fuck Air Board’ in Mess Songs & Rhymes of the RAAF 25: And the reason they gave for his being dead meat, / Was that he had fuck all but baked beans to eat.
1949		Monteleone Criminal Sl. (rev. edn).
1986		T. Philbin Under Cover 51: Once they found out, you could be dead meat.
1996		J. Cameron It Was An Accident 145: Dead meat if they got me.

3. a horse that has no chance of winning a race; thus dead meat market / shop, a race in which the bulk of contestants are thus characterized.

1889		Music Hall & Theatre Rev. 27 Apr. 172/1: Wellington was ‘dead meat’ [...] and I expect [the owner] will run a very different horse at Kempton.
1900		Bulletin (Sydney) 8 Dec. 20/2: I told him your brother dared not whisper [the name] even in his sleep, until the stable-money was on, for fear of spoiling the market. / ‘Ah, yes, the dead-meat market,’ said Joe, and he went off into another fit of laughter.
1901		Sydney Sportsman (Surry Hills, NSW) 20 Feb. 1/4: These are what we calls the dead ’uns, / What are put in dead meat shops / Where the public goes to back ’em, / And the bookie always cops.
1904		Sydney Sportsman (Surry Hills, NSW) 2 Mar. 4/1: It has long been an open secret that these fleecing fielders live on the ‘dead meat’ supplied by some of their thieving pals where with to plunder the public.

4. (Aus.) in attrib. use of sense 4.

1901

Sydney Sportsman (Surry Hills, NSW) 20 Feb. 1/4: All the ’tectives they are game ’uns, / But a quidsy does a lot, / So they watch the dead-meat bookie, / And are never on the spot.

5. the flaccid penis.

1966

Trimble 5000 Adult Sex Words and Phrases.

6. a prostitute, esp. an older woman.

1966		Trimble 5000 Adult Sex Words and Phrases.
1984		Partridge DSUE (8th edn) 295/1: late C.19–20.
1986–7		Maledicta IX 148: The compilers ought to have looked farther afield and found: […] dead meat (as opposed to fresh meat).

7. a stupid, dull person.

1983		R. Klein Jailhouse Jargon and Street Sl. [unpub. ms.].
2000		G.V. Higgins At End of Day (2001) 82: He’s dead meat with you thereafter.