give

verb

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\ ˈgiv

gave\ ˈgāv

\; given\ ˈgi-vən

\; giving

Definition of give

(Entry 1 of 2)

transitive verb

1 : to make a present of give a doll to a child

2a : to grant or bestow by formal action the law gives citizens the right to vote

b : to accord or yield to another gave him her confidence

3a : to put into the possession of another for his or her use gave me his phone number

b(1) : to administer as a sacrament

(2) : to administer as a medicine

c : to commit to another as a trust or responsibility and usually for an expressed reason

d : to transfer from one's authority or custody the sheriff gave the prisoner to the warden

e : to execute and deliver all employees must give bond

f : to convey to another give them my regards

4a : to offer to the action of another : proffer gave her his hand

b dated, of a woman : to yield (oneself) to a man in sexual intercourse

5a : to present in public performance give a concert

b : to present to view or observation gave the signal to start

6 : to provide by way of entertainment give a party

7 : to propose as a toast

8a : to designate as a share or portion : allot all the earth to thee and to thy race I give— John Milton

b : to make assignment of (a name)

c : to set forth as an actual or hypothetical datum give the dimensions of the room

d : to attribute in thought or utterance : ascribe gave the credit to you

9a : to yield as a product, consequence, or effect : produce cows give milk 84 divided by 12 gives 7

b : to bring forth : bear

10a : to yield possession of by way of exchange : pay

b : to dispose of for a price : sell

11a : to deliver by some bodily action gave him a push

b : to carry out (a movement, facial expression, etc.) gave a cynical smile

c : to inflict as punishment

d : to award by formal verdict judgment was given against the plaintiff

12 : to offer for consideration, acceptance, or use gives no reason for his absence

13a : to suffer the loss of : sacrifice gallantly gave his life for his country

b : to offer as appropriate or due especially to something higher or more worthy gave his spirit to God

c : to apply freely or fully : devote gave themselves to their work

d : to offer as a pledge I give you my word

14a : to cause one to have or receive mountains always gave him pleasure

b : to cause a person to catch by contagion, infection, or exposure

15a : to allow one to have or take give me time

b : to lead or attempt to lead —used with an infinitiveyou gave me to understand you'd be late

16 : to care to the extent of didn't give a hoot

intransitive verb

1 : to make gifts or presents gave generously to charities

2a : to yield to physical force or strain

b : to collapse from the application of force or pressure The canvas chair gave under her weight.

c : to undergo or submit to change for the strike to be settled, something has to give

3 : to afford a view or passage : open the window gives onto the terrace

4 : to enter wholeheartedly into an activity

5 slang : to be happening wants to know what gives

give birth

: to have a baby gave birth last Thursday

give birth to

1 : to produce as offspring gave birth to a son

2 : to be the source of

give chase

: to set off in pursuit

give ground

: to withdraw before superior force : retreat

give of

: to make available : provide generously freely gave of their time

give or take

: as an estimate accurate within (an amount to be added or subtracted) weighs 150 pounds, give or take a few pounds

give place to

: to be replaced or succeeded by optimism gave place to worry

give rise to

: to be the cause or source of : produce

give the gun

: to open the throttle of : speed up

give the lie to

1 : to accuse of falsehood

2 : to show to be false, inaccurate, or invalid

give tongue

of hounds : to begin barking on the scent

give way

1a : retreat

b : to yield the right of way

2 : to yield oneself without restraint or control

3a : to yield to or as if to physical stress The roof gave way under heavy snow.

b : to yield to entreaty or insistence After several hours of debate, the opposition finally gave way.

4 : to yield place Farmland has given way to shopping malls.

5 : to begin to row

give

noun

Definition of give (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : capacity or tendency to yield to force or strain : flexibility

2 : the ability of a material to bend or stretch The knitted fabric has a lot of give to it.

Synonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about give

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Choose the Right Synonym for give

Verb

give, present, donate, bestow, confer, afford mean to convey to another as a possession. give, the general term, is applicable to any passing over of anything by any means. give alms gave her a ride on a pony give my love to your mother present carries a note of formality and ceremony. present an award donate is likely to imply a publicized giving (as to charity). donate a piano to the orphanage bestow implies the conveying of something as a gift and may suggest condescension on the part of the giver. bestow unwanted advice confer implies a gracious giving (as of a favor or honor). confer an honorary degree afford implies a giving or bestowing usually as a natural or legitimate consequence of the character of the giver. the trees afford shade a development that affords us some hope

Examples of give in a Sentence

Verb She gave him a camera for Christmas. Are you giving this to me or only lending it? She has given money to many worthy causes. They're asking people to give money for a new hospital. Please give to our charity. We already gave at the office. It is better to give than to receive. He gave me the letter. He gave her his coat to hold. He gave me a head start.

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb In the weeks leading up to winter break, Carney recommended schools pause in-person learning until Jan. 11, not because schools were not safe but to give school leaders time to adjust to operational challenges. — From Usa Today Network And Wire Reports, USA TODAY, "Hank Aaron, skeptic’s mea culpa, vaccine campouts: News from around our 50 states," 6 Jan. 2021 Never mind that the Constitution doesn’t give Congress the power to reject electoral votes submitted by the states. — Los Angeles Times, "Column: Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley are torching the Constitution to further their own presidential ambitions," 6 Jan. 2021 Most strikingly, this game does not give you complete control over Meat Boy (or his partner, Bandage Girl, who’s also playable). — Robert Verbruggen, National Review, "A Modern-Classic Video Game Finally Gets a Sequel," 2 Jan. 2021 Don’t give your power away to those who don’t appreciate you. — Meghan Rose, Glamour, "Scorpio Tarot Horoscopes: January 2021," 1 Jan. 2021 However, one friend said the kind thing to do would have been to give her the spot and then brush my teeth elsewhere. — Washington Post, "Miss Manners: Tooth-brushing brings parking spot drama," 31 Dec. 2020 The government has said its plan is to give as many at-risk people as possible a first dose of the vaccine, providing some protection, with a second dose given within 12 weeks, rather than the four week period used in the clinical trial. — Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, "U.K. approves AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine," 30 Dec. 2020 One way to share our desire to hug – and be hugged – is to give to organizations that help others. — Amy Dickinson, Detroit Free Press, "This year, those that have should give," 29 Dec. 2020 One way to share our desire to hug — and be hugged — is to give to organizations that help others. — Amy Dickinson, chicagotribune.com, "Ask Amy: This year, those that have — should give," 28 Dec. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun In this case, the gelatin offers enough give for the needle of the 3D printer to slide through. — Matt Simon, Wired, "This Squishy 3D-Printed Human Heart Feels Like the Real Thing," 23 Nov. 2020 The Chagrin Valley Chamber of Commerce is doing a live Facebook give-away of ten $100 gift cards each day, Saturdays Nov. 28, Dec. 5 and Dec. 12. — Joan Rusek, cleveland, "Get your holiday mojo on with virtual and in-person events: Valley Views," 23 Nov. 2020 Animators turned to that physical version of Buddy for guidance, which led to a give and take between the two versions. — Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, "Move over, Baby Yoda! Jingle Jangle robot Buddy 3000 will steal your heart," 14 Nov. 2020 Once the dynamics of entanglement are clearer, scientists hope to comprehend how spacetime emerges, just as the microscopic movements of atoms in the air give rise to the complex patterns of thermodynamics and weather. — Clara Moskowitz, Scientific American, "Tangled Up in Spacetime," 26 Oct. 2016 The people of Alabama need to see a give and take, but the Majority Leader [ Mitch McConnell (R-Ken.)] does not allow that to happen. — al, "Doug Jones says Biden hasn’t talked to him about AG job," 9 Nov. 2020 The absence of elastane and the give of the fabric were such relief. — Alex Erdekian, Condé Nast Traveler, "The Williamsburg Vintage Shops That Shaped My Style," 6 Nov. 2020 After Rodgers comes another Hall of Fame quarterback, Drew Brees, with the Saints (5-2), who beat the Bears 26-23 in overtime Sunday, then the shaky Rams again, and the Buffalo Bills (6-2), before the schedule offers some true give. — Ann Killion, SFChronicle.com, "With 49ers’ loss in Seattle, 2019 seems like a long time ago," 1 Nov. 2020 Trousers with enough give for the conga, for going loco in Acapulco. — Raven Smith, Vogue, "The Minimalist Magic of Katie Holmes," 22 Oct. 2020

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

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Last Updated

10 Jan 2021

Cite this Entry

“Give.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/give. Accessed 20 Jan. 2021.

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More Definitions for give

give

verb

\ ˈgiv

gave\ ˈgāv \; given\ ˈgiv-ən \; giving

Kids Definition of give

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : to hand over to be kept : present He gave her a present.

2 : to cause to have Don't give me trouble.

3 : to let someone or something have give permission

4 : to offer for consideration or acceptance Can you give an example?

5 : utter entry 2 give a yell give a speech

6 : furnish sense 2, provide give support The candle gives light. I'm giving a party.

7 : pay entry 1 sense 1 She gave me 20 dollars for my old skates.

8 : to deliver by some bodily action I gave her a hug.

9 : to yield as a product : produce Two plus two gives four.

10 : to yield slightly The mattress gave under our weight.

give in

: to stop trying to fight I begged Mom for permission till she gave in.

give out

1 : tell sense 6 Don't give out your phone number.

2 : to stop working The car finally gave out.

give up

1 : to let go of He gave up his seat to an elderly woman.

2 : quit Oh, I give up trying to reason with you.

give way

1 : to break down : collapse The bridge gave way.

2 : to be unable to resist No one gave way to fear.

give

noun

Kids Definition of give (Entry 2 of 2)

: the ability to be bent or stretched The rope was tight, but still had some give.

Choose the Right Synonym for give

Verb

give, present, and donate mean to hand over to someone without looking for a return. give can be used of anything that is delivered in any way. Please give me your coat. I gave a friend a gift. present is used when something is given with some ceremony. They presented a trophy to the winner. donate is used for giving to a charity. Some kind person donated the toys.