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

see also give up the ghost

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

But, that said, the Princess of Wales refuses to give up one parenting task, insisting on doing it nearly every day. —Rachel Burchfield, InStyle, 7 Jan. 2026

Rather than give up his own seats, Teumer called in a favor of his own. —Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 7 Jan. 2026

Trump is amping up America’s wars at the turn of the new year, and Putin and Netanyahu both refuse to give up theirs. —Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 7 Jan. 2026

Shepard started the second period — replacing Leevi Merilaine,n who gave up three goals on eight shots — marking his first appearance with the Senators. —CBS News, 6 Jan. 2026

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