What does a 4 beat rest look like in music?

In musical notation, a four-beat rest is represented by a whole-note rest. A whole note rest looks like a rectangular-shaped box without a stem and it usually appears above or below the staff (i.e. line), depending on the pitch to which it refers.

When a whole note rest is placed on the staff, it means that the musician should rest for the entire duration of a whole note, which in 4/4 time, would be four beats. Whole rests can also be used in other time signatures to indicate a rest of a different length, such as two beats in 2/4 time or six beats in 6/8 time.

Here's a visual representation of a whole-note rest:

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|_____|

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For example, in a song that is written in 4/4 time (meaning there are four quarter notes in each measure) a four-beat rest, represented by a whole-note rest, would take up the entire measure.