give up
verb
gave up; given up; giving up; gives up
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
: to cease doing or attempting something especially as an admission of defeat : quit
—often used with on
don't give up on the project
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
After giving up runs in each of his first four outings, Alvarado has only surrendered two runs since early June and hasn’t given up a run in his last four outings.
—
Sean Campbell, Sacbee.com, 3 Aug. 2025
He’s given up only 15 hits and eight walks during that stretch, striking out 37.
—Steve Gorten, Miami Herald, 3 Aug. 2025
The spectacular acquisition of Miller, which required giving up De Vries, was especially puzzling in that, in Robert Suarez, the Padres already had the MLB saves leader.
—Bill Madden, New York Daily News, 2 Aug. 2025
The Philadelphia Phillies gave up two top prospects to get Jhoan Duran and his 100 mph splinker from the Minnesota Twins.
—Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 2 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for give up
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.
Sean Campbell, Sacbee.com, 3 Aug. 2025
He’s given up only 15 hits and eight walks during that stretch, striking out 37.
—Steve Gorten, Miami Herald, 3 Aug. 2025
The spectacular acquisition of Miller, which required giving up De Vries, was especially puzzling in that, in Robert Suarez, the Padres already had the MLB saves leader.
—Bill Madden, New York Daily News, 2 Aug. 2025
The Philadelphia Phillies gave up two top prospects to get Jhoan Duran and his 100 mph splinker from the Minnesota Twins.
—Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 2 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for give up
Cite this Entry
“Give up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/give%20up. Accessed 6 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share