GAVE UP Synonyms: 128 Similar and Opposite Words

gave up

verb

past tense of give up

as in relinquished

to give (something) over to the control or possession of another usually under duress was in so much debt he had to give up his house and move into a cheaper apartment

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as in abandoned

to stop doing (something) permanently I hope you won't give up playing the piano

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as in succumbed

to yield to the control or power of enemy forces with the prospect of a renewed enemy attack, the regiment decided to simply give up

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as in indulged

to give (oneself) over to something especially unrestrainedly even in the darkest days of her troubled marriage, she refused to give herself up to feelings of utter hopelessness

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of gave up That’s a lot of anger toward someone who just gave up their entire summer for your entertainment. — Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 14 July 2026 To focus on baseball, Roch gave up a scholarship offer to play quarterback at Notre Dame. — Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 13 July 2026 On the other side, Giants ace Logan Webb, a Rocklin native, gave up five first-inning runs to put the team in an early hole, which the Blue Jays built on by scoring another five over the last two innings off two San Francisco relievers. — Sean Campbell, Sacbee.com, 8 July 2026 The Packers then blew a 21-3 halftime lead in the Wild Card round against Chicago, gave up 25 fourth quarter points and eventually suffered a shocking 31-27 loss to the arch-rival Bears. — Rob Reischel, Forbes.com, 8 July 2026 Even if Boeing gave up some of the Atlas Vs under its contractual control, ULA would not be able to easily retrofit any of the leftover Atlas Vs for other missions. — Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 7 July 2026 Cade Civalli gave up one hit in seven innings and had a career-high 13 strikeouts in the Washington Nationals' 8-1 victory over the Red Sox on Tuesday night, snapping Boston's five-game winning streak. — CBS News, 1 July 2026 Gore also went five innings and gave up five runs on seven hits with seven strikeouts. — ABC News, 1 July 2026 In his first start since May 26, Peterson (3-6) gave up five runs over the first two innings (four earned), then settled in to retire the side in order in the third and fourth innings. — Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 22 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for gave up

Verb

Around 2021, this collector relinquished 34 objects (including the bronze Buddhas).

— Leigh Anne Miller, ARTnews.com, 10 July 2026
Briscoe came out of the pits with the lead with 42 laps to go and never relinquished it despite a strong push from Bell.

— Steve Millar, Chicago Tribune, 6 July 2026

Definition of relinquished

Verb

The sheriff's office said the inmate heard the K-9 unit and surrendered, being taken back into custody without further incident.

— Matthew Ablon, CBS News, 13 July 2026
The tipping point came when Wrobleski surrendered eight runs to the Washington Nationals in his first start last season.

— Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 13 July 2026

Definition of surrendered

Verb

John Healey quit his former post last month after accusing then-premier Keir Starmer of endangering Britain by not committing to spending 3% of GDP on defense by 2030.

— J.D. Capelouto, semafor.com, 20 July 2026
After the 2023 complaint, Benton wasn’t interviewed by House leadership for an astounding three months, by which point the staffer had already quit her job, according to Tribune reporting.

— The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 20 July 2026

Definition of quit

Verb

Countless trees were felled and taken to Eugene for processing in mills or floated up the Willamette to Portland, the sawn trunks chained together in massive, bobbing rafts.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 July 2026
Messi had produced another vintage performance three weeks earlier, this time at the Nou Camp, where the Bayern Munich defender Jerome Boateng toppled over like a tree that had been felled.

— Charlotte Harpur, New York Times, 10 July 2026

Definition of fell

Verb

Even for those in the financial ‘elite’ that Newcastle hope to join soon, vast transfer spending has rendered sales increasingly integral.

— Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 18 July 2026
The project was born from Hebden’s long-running Spotify playlist, which has swelled to more than 2,300 songs and 192 hours of music in its decade of existence, and whose title is also rendered in a perpetually changing string of Wingdings.

— Philip Sherburne, Pitchfork, 18 July 2026