Give Definition

gĭv
gave, given, gives, giving
verb
gave, given, gives, giving
To make a present of.
We gave her flowers for her birthday.
American Heritage
To turn over the possession or control of to someone without cost or exchange; make a gift of.
Webster's New World
To hand or pass over into the trust or keeping of someone.
To give the porter a bag to carry, to give a daughter in marriage.
Webster's New World
To hand or pass over in exchange for something else; sell (goods, services, etc.) for a price or pay (a price) for goods, services, etc.
Webster's New World
To deliver in exchange or recompense; pay.
Gave five dollars for the book.
American Heritage
noun
Capacity or inclination to yield under pressure.
American Heritage
A bending, moving, sinking, etc. under pressure.
Webster's New World
A tendency to be springy; resilience.
Webster's New World

(uncountable) The amount of bending that something undergoes when a force is applied to it.

This chair doesn't have much give.
Wiktionary
idiom
give a good account of (oneself)
  • To behave or perform creditably.
American Heritage
give birth to
  • To bear as offspring.
  • To be the origin of:

    a hobby that gave birth to a successful business.

American Heritage
give ground
  • To yield to a more powerful force; retreat.
American Heritage
give it to
  • To punish or reprimand severely:

    My parents really gave it to me for coming in late.

American Heritage
give or take
  • Plus or minus a small specified amount:

    The chalet is close to the road, give or take a few hundred yards.

American Heritage

Origin of Give

  • From Middle English given, from Old Norse gefa (“to give”), from Proto-Germanic *gebaną (“to give”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰh₁bʰ- (“to take, hold, have”). Displaced or merged with native Middle English yiven, ȝeven, from Old English ġiefan, from the same Proto-Germanic source (cf. the inherited now obsolete English doublet yive). Cognate with Scots gie (“to give”), Danish give (“to give”), Swedish giva, ge (“to give”), Icelandic gefa (“to give”), North Frisian jiw, jiiw, jeewe (“to give”), West Frisian jaan (“to give”), Low German geven (“to give”), Dutch geven (“to give”), German geben (“to give”), Latin habeō (“have, hold”), Old Irish gaibim (“I hold”), Lithuanian gabenti (“to carry, transport”), Polish gabać (“to grab, snatch”), Sanskrit गभस्ति (gabhasti, “hand”).

    From Wiktionary

  • Middle English given from Old English giefan Old Norse gefa ghabh- in Indo-European roots

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

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