gave up (to)

verb

past tense of give up (to)
as in dedicated
to keep or intend for a special purpose unfortunately, when he was in college, weekends were largely given up to binge drinking

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for gave up (to)
  1. dedicated
  2. devoted
  3. set by
Verb
  • On June 16, a sculpture and plaza was also dedicated as part of the project, on the same day that Argentina and soccer superstar Lionel Messi battled Algeria at Kansas City Stadium (Arrowhead) during the World Cup.
    — Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 31 July 2026
  • Her contributions to the program were so great that in 2023 Dartmouth formally dedicated her jersey—number 20— in her honor, installing a permanent banner on campus at the Leede Arena basketball court.
    — Sarah Glodek, Fortune, 31 July 2026
Definition of dedicated
Verb
  • Martin Halliwell is a Partner at NewSpace Capital, one of the world's first private equity firms devoted exclusively to growth-stage companies working in the space technology sector.
    — Martin Halliwell, Space.com, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Last year the Norwegian podcast The Burning of the Midnight Amp devoted an episode to Whomp That Sucker.
    — Al Shipley, SPIN, 31 July 2026
Definition of devoted
Verb
  • Act quickly to prevent stains from setting by avoiding the dryer and rinsing with cold water.
    — Ashlyn Needham, Southern Living, 2 Aug. 2026
  • In addition, nearly half of the foods reviewed failed to meet at least one nutritional benchmark set by the World Health Organization.
    — Omer Awan, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2026
Definition of set by
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.

Browse Nearby Words

gave up the ghost
gave up (to)
gave way
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Gave up (to).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gave%20up%20%28to%29. Accessed 6 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of torpor

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

'Sneaked' or 'Snuck': Which is correct?

Why does English have so many silent letters?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

How long is a jiffy?
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
asap street sign
Figure Out These Acronyms ASAP You don't have to be a NASA engineer to get these...
See All