give up

verb

gave up; given up; giving up; gives 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

4

a

: 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

Phrases

give up the ghost

: to cease to live or function : die

Synonyms of give up

• relinquish
• surrender
• deliver
• render
• turn in

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

The Nuggets, in general, have been prone to giving up ball-movement 3s lately when collapsing to the paint. —Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 25 Nov. 2025

The first draft of the proposal contained many concessions to Russia, including provisions for Kyiv to cede territory, give up its NATO ambitions, and limit the size of its army. —Natasha Bertrand, CNN Money, 25 Nov. 2025

Already, the Mets dealt a locker room leader and fan favorite for a high-level infield defender, hoping to stop giving up easy runs due to their fielding and upgrade their defense and offensive capabilities. —Nelson Espinal, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Nov. 2025

During the session, 70-year-old Kher shared multiple moments from his life, when giving up simply wasn’t an option. —Udita Jhunjhunwala, Variety, 25 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for give up

• buttercup
• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup

Kids Definition

give up

verb

1

: surrender entry 1 sense 1

2

: to abandon (oneself) to a feeling, influence, or activity

3

: stop entry 1 sense 7a