as in to pay
to give what is owed for
despite having good credit, the couple still had to pony up a large down payment for the house
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Recent Examples of pony up
Some of them have placed measures on the ballot asking voters to pony up property-tax money for specific needs.
—
Rose Evans, Idaho Statesman, 5 Nov. 2025
Gabrielle Smith, age 28, was hit with a $5,000 bond, and Styx Hatch, 19, had to pony up $10,000 out of her trust fund.
—Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 11 Oct. 2025
Getting people to pony up requires other pieces to fall into place, said Amol Mehra, director of industry programs at Laudes Foundation.
—Jasmin Malik Chua, Sourcing Journal, 30 Sep. 2025
One conundrum that lingers in the marketplace is that some indie theatrical distributors are without a pay-one deal/streaming partner, and the subset that’s willing to pony up — sellers cite Hulu, HBO Max and Starz — is quite small and capped in cash.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 4 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pony up
Rose Evans, Idaho Statesman, 5 Nov. 2025
Gabrielle Smith, age 28, was hit with a $5,000 bond, and Styx Hatch, 19, had to pony up $10,000 out of her trust fund.
—Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 11 Oct. 2025
Getting people to pony up requires other pieces to fall into place, said Amol Mehra, director of industry programs at Laudes Foundation.
—Jasmin Malik Chua, Sourcing Journal, 30 Sep. 2025
One conundrum that lingers in the marketplace is that some indie theatrical distributors are without a pay-one deal/streaming partner, and the subset that’s willing to pony up — sellers cite Hulu, HBO Max and Starz — is quite small and capped in cash.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 4 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pony up
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pony up
Verb
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In this Gothic fantasy debut, Leena Al-Sayer bargains her ability to see the dead in order to pay for the expensive medicine her brother Rami needs to live.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
2 Feb. 2026
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The Illinois Department of Natural Resources and the legislature should act on the report’s recommendations with actions to strengthen reporting, enforce existing laws, prevent further abandonment of wells and ensure polluters pay for cleanup.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
1 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The bond district includes the American Royal project, Plaza at the Speedway and its shops and vacant land north of the development, meaning incremental sales tax revenues from future projects built on the vacant land also will be used to pay off the STAR bonds.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
31 Jan. 2026
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If Grammy nominations are any indication, Thomas’s decision to fully embrace his own artistry has paid off.—
Hershal Pandya,
Vulture,
31 Jan. 2026
Verb
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For Proust—who may have met Wilde and even been the subject of the older man’s amorous attention (though accounts of their meeting or meetings could be apocryphal)—his downfall showed that life featured far keener sorrows than those encountered in books.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
2 Feb. 2026
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On January 19, CNN reported that Soltani was in good physical health and had been able to meet with his family, according to Hengaw and one of his relatives.—
Lex Harvey,
CNN Money,
2 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pony up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pony%20up. Accessed 6 Feb. 2026.
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