give up

give up idiom
  1. Surrender, as in The suspect gave himself up. [1100s]
  2. Stop doing or performing something, as in They gave up the search, or She gave up smoking almost thirty years ago. [c. 1600]
  3. Part with, relinquish, as in They gave up their New York apartment, or We gave up all hope of finding the lost tickets. [Mid-1500s]
  4. Lose hope for, as in We had given you up as lost. [Late 1500s]
  5. Admit defeat, as in I give up—what's the right answer? [c. 1600]
  6. give up on. Abandon, lose one's faith in, as in I gave up on writing a novel, or She gave up on religion years ago. [Colloquial; second half of 1900s] Also see give oneself up to.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Comments
Improve this definition.
Do you have more to add? Share your linguistic knowledge or observation.
/Register to save your comments.