give up

verb

gave up; given up; giving up; gives up

Definition of give up

transitive verb

1 : to yield control or possession of : surrender forced to give up his job

2 : to desist from : abandon refused to give up her efforts

3 : to declare incurable or insoluble

4a : to abandon (oneself) to a particular feeling, influence, or activity gave himself up to despair

b : to devote to a particular purpose or use

5 : to despair of seeing we'd given you up

6 : to allow (a hit or run in baseball) while pitching

intransitive verb

: to cease doing or attempting something especially as an admission of defeat : quit —often used with on don't give up on the project

give up the ghost

: to cease to live or function : die

Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about give up

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Examples of give up in a Sentence

was in so much debt he had to give up his house and move into a cheaper apartment I hope you won't give up playing the piano.

Recent Examples on the Web

This doesn’t mean older women should give up and go into purdah. — Abby Gardner, Glamour, "A Fashion Editor Said Supermodel Helena Christensen Was Too Old to Wear a Bustier—and People Aren’t Having It," 30 Apr. 2019 But–and this is a big but—don't give up on your romantic, showering-under-the-stars dreams just yet; there are affordable options out there. — Hadley Mendelsohn, House Beautiful, "The $225 Outdoor Shower Designers Are Obsessed With," 26 Apr. 2019 Billie may be out here leaving Shawn Mendes on read (seriously WHO would do that??), but that doesn't mean fans are giving up hope that the two might collaborate in the near future. — Carolyn Twersky, Seventeen, "All the Signs That Shawn Mendes and Billie Eilish are Working on a Collab Together," 4 Apr. 2019 Shortly after that summit, Trump declared that the nuclear threat from North Korea was over, but critics have questioned whether North Korea will in fact give up its nuclear program — a central demand for Trump. — John Fritze, USA TODAY, "Kim Jong Un praises summit with U.S., describes Trump as 'your excellency' in letter," 12 July 2018 Another Xinhua report suggests that the regime is in no hurry to give up that old-time anti-religion: China’s reform has inspired the world: developing countries can walk a new path to modernization that is different from the West. — James Freeman, WSJ, "Human Extinction: Hot Again," 18 Dec. 2018 And with the rest of the world watching, the Zoo certainly isn’t ready to give up on its favorite panda couple. — Katherine J. Wu, Smithsonian, "Giant Panda Mei Xiang Will Not Give Birth," 5 July 2018 And yet Chicago, who founded the first feminist art collective in 1970, is nowhere near giving up the fight. — Harper's BAZAAR, "Art Pioneer Judy Chicago Is the Feminist We All Need," 2 Apr. 2019 In the west, only Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are full fast days, although some give up meat every Friday. — Woman's Day Staff, Woman's Day, "When Is Lent? Here's Everything You Need to Know," 11 Jan. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'give up.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.