as in relinquished
to give (something) over to the control or possession of another usually under duress
finally got my brother to cough up the dough he owed me
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Recent Examples of coughed up
On the Sabres’ first goal, Tage Thompson was all over Fraser Minten, who coughed up the puck after an errant breakout pass from Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy.
—
Fluto Shinzawa, New York Times, 26 Apr. 2026
There was nothing to smile about in Atlanta, the scene of the crime for a Knicks team that coughed up home-court advantage in Game 2, then fell into a 1-2 series deficit in its first-round playoff matchup in a crushing 109-108 loss to the Hawks on Thursday.
—Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 24 Apr. 2026
Denver held the Wolves to 105 points in a Game 1 win but coughed up a 19-point lead in Game 2.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 21 Apr. 2026
Treinen gave up four consecutive hits in the seventh inning, failed to retire a batter and coughed up a Dodger lead.
—Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 19 Apr. 2026
Nike director Tim Cook and CEO Elliott Hill coughed up about $1 million each in another round of insider stock buying.
—Natasha Abellard, CNBC, 15 Apr. 2026
McIlroy coughed up a six-shot lead in the third round.
—CBS News, 13 Apr. 2026
The Angels coughed up a 6-4 lead and took a 9-7 loss to the Houston Astros on Sunday that left them with a split of the four-game set in Houston.
—Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Mar. 2026
The Bruins coughed up a 2-0 first period lead to an also-ran New Jersey Devils and lost 4-3 in overtime.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 17 Mar. 2026
Fluto Shinzawa, New York Times, 26 Apr. 2026
There was nothing to smile about in Atlanta, the scene of the crime for a Knicks team that coughed up home-court advantage in Game 2, then fell into a 1-2 series deficit in its first-round playoff matchup in a crushing 109-108 loss to the Hawks on Thursday.
—Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 24 Apr. 2026
Denver held the Wolves to 105 points in a Game 1 win but coughed up a 19-point lead in Game 2.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 21 Apr. 2026
Treinen gave up four consecutive hits in the seventh inning, failed to retire a batter and coughed up a Dodger lead.
—Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 19 Apr. 2026
Nike director Tim Cook and CEO Elliott Hill coughed up about $1 million each in another round of insider stock buying.
—Natasha Abellard, CNBC, 15 Apr. 2026
McIlroy coughed up a six-shot lead in the third round.
—CBS News, 13 Apr. 2026
The Angels coughed up a 6-4 lead and took a 9-7 loss to the Houston Astros on Sunday that left them with a split of the four-game set in Houston.
—Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Mar. 2026
The Bruins coughed up a 2-0 first period lead to an also-ran New Jersey Devils and lost 4-3 in overtime.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 17 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for coughed up
Verb
-
The Royals took a 7-6 lead and never relinquished it.—
Jaylon Thompson
May 2,
Kansas City Star,
2 May 2026
-
In April, two babies were relinquished at Connecticut hospitals under the state’s Safe Havens Act, according to the state Department of Children and Families.—
Mikayla Bunnell,
Hartford Courant,
30 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Each wavy stripe is rendered in beige leather, as well as the toe-tip.—
Ian Servantes,
Footwear News,
7 May 2026
-
The 53-year-old coach does not want to see the regular season be rendered meaningless.—
Ryan Canfield,
FOXNews.com,
7 May 2026
Verb
-
Padres starter Germán Márquez surrendered seven of the eight runs scored by the White Sox, six of those in the second.—
Kevin Acee,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
2 May 2026
-
The left-hander surrendered three hits — two of them solo home runs by Sosa and Straw — walked one and struck out four.—
John Shipley,
Twin Cities,
2 May 2026
Verb
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The candidate has become accustomed to comical mailroom interactions with his neighbors, who are routinely delivered fliers emblazoned with his face.—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
New Yorker,
7 May 2026
-
Moreover, the flexible tandem cells also delivered strong results.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
7 May 2026
Verb
-
Drozdowski was held in lieu of $1 million bail and was turned over to the state Department of Correction.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
6 May 2026
-
The drugs and the man were turned over to Haitian authorities on Sunday, the Coast Guard said.—
Devoun Cetoute,
Miami Herald,
5 May 2026
Verb
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The Winter Park Crew turned in an impressive performance last past weekend at the Florida Scholastic Rowing Association Sweep Championships, winning the overall state scholastic team championship for the 14th year in a row and repeating as women’s youth team champions.—
Chris Hays,
The Orlando Sentinel,
1 May 2026
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Twins 7, Blue Jays 1 Starting pitcher performance Bailey Ober turned in his third consecutive quality start, limiting the Blue Jays to just one run in six-plus innings pitched.—
Betsy Helfand,
Twin Cities,
1 May 2026
Verb
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Her government has handed over scores of cartel suspects to the United States, arrested hundreds of other cartel operatives and busted numerous illicit drug laboratories, among other steps.—
Kate Linthicum,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Apr. 2026
-
The controller investigated along with the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority and ultimately handed over its findings to the district attorney.—
The Editorial Board,
Daily News,
29 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Coughed up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/coughed%20up. Accessed 8 May. 2026.
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