give up on (someone or something)

idiom

1
: to stop trying to improve the condition of (someone)
He has gotten in trouble many times, but his parents have never given up on him.
Please don't give up on me. I promise I'll do better.
2
: to stop having hope of seeing (someone)
We'd given up on you hours ago!
3
: to stop trying to do or achieve (something)
They have given up on their plan to build a new factory.
She hasn't given up on trying to convince her husband to buy a new car.

Examples of give up on (someone or something) in a Sentence

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To Thomas, the phrase is meant to encourage people to not give up on democracy. Harriet Blair Rowan, Mercury News, 19 Apr. 2025 Quintana-Leguisano said the letter is an inspiration and a reminder to never give up on finding her mother, who has been missing in Mexico since Aug. 9 in what Iowa's U.S. senators have called a kidnapping for ransom. José Mendiola, USA Today, 31 Mar. 2025 Other options give up on silicon entirely and perform the relevant computation in a form of phase change memory. ArsTechnica, 27 Mar. 2025 But Hollywood is not yet ready to give up on the country’s generous tax incentives. Leo Barraclough, Variety, 16 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for give up on (someone or something)

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Cite this Entry

“Give up on (someone or something).” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/give%20up%20on%20%28someone%20or%20something%29. Accessed 4 May. 2025.

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