Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

Give

Give

(gĭv)
,
Verb.
T.
[
imp.
Gave
(gāv)
;
p. p.
Given
(gĭv′’n)
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Giving
.]
[OE.
given
,
yiven
,
yeven
, AS.
gifan
,
giefan
; akin to D.
geven
, OS.
geðan
, OHG.
geban
, G.
geben
, Icel.
gefa
, Sw.
gifva
, Dan.
give
, Goth.
giban
. Cf.
Gift
,
Noun.
]
1.
To bestow without receiving a return; to confer without compensation; to impart, as a possession; to grant, as authority or permission; to yield up or allow.
For generous lords had rather
give
than pay.
Young.
2.
To yield possesion of; to deliver over, as property, in exchange for something; to pay;
as, we
give
the value of what we buy
.
What shall a man
give
in exchange for his soul ?
Matt. xvi. 26.
3.
To yield; to furnish; to produce; to emit;
as, flint and steel
give
sparks
.
4.
To communicate or announce, as advice, tidings, etc.; to pronounce; to render or utter, as an opinion, a judgment, a sentence, a shout, etc.
5.
To grant power or license to; to permit; to allow; to license; to commission.
It is
given
me once again to behold my friend.
Rowe.
Then
give
thy friend to shed the sacred wine.
Pope.
6.
To exhibit as a product or result; to produce; to show;
as, the number of men, divided by the number of ships,
gives
four hundred to each ship
.
7.
To devote; to apply; used reflexively, to devote or apply one’s self;
as, the soldiers
give
themselves to plunder
; also in this sense used very frequently in the past participle;
as, the people are
given
to luxury and pleasure; the youth is
given
to study.
8.
(Logic & Math.)
To set forth as a known quantity or a known relation, or as a premise from which to reason; – used principally in the passive form given.
9.
To allow or admit by way of supposition.
I
give
not heaven for lost.
Mlton.
10.
To attribute; to assign; to adjudge.
I don't wonder at people's
giving
him to me as a lover.
Sheridan.
11.
To excite or cause to exist, as a sensation;
as, to
give
offense; to
give
pleasure or pain.
12.
To pledge;
as, to
give
one's word
.
13.
To cause; to make; – with the infinitive;
as, to
give
one to understand, to know, etc.
But there the duke was
given
to understand
That in a gondola were seen together
Lorenzo and his amorous Jessica.
Shakespeare
To give away
,
to make over to another; to transfer.

–
To give back
,
to return; to restore.
Atterbury.
–
To give the bag
,
to cheat.
[Obs.]
–
To give birth to
.
(a)
To bear or bring forth, as a child.
(b)
To originate; to give existence to, as an enterprise, idea.
–
To give chase
,
to pursue.
–
To give ear to
.
See under
Ear
.
–
To give forth
,
to give out; to publish; to tell.
Hayward.
–
To give ground
.
See under
Ground
,
Noun.
–
To give the hand
,
to pledge friendship or faith.
–
To give the hand of
,
to espouse; to bestow in marriage.
–
To give the head
.
See under
Head
,
Noun.
–
To give in
.
(a)
To abate; to deduct.
(b)
To declare; to make known; to announce; to tender;
as,
to give in
one's adhesion to a party
.
–
To give the lie to
(a person), to tell (him) that he lies.
–
To give line
.
See under
Line
.
–
To give off
,
to emit, as steam, vapor, odor, etc.
–
To give one's self away
,
to make an inconsiderate surrender of one's cause, an unintentional disclosure of one's purposes, or the like.
[Colloq.]
–
To give out
.
(a)
To utter publicly; to report; to announce or declare.
One that
gives out
himself Prince Florizel.
Shakespeare
(b)
To send out; to emit; to distribute; as, a substance gives out steam or odors.
–
To give over
.
(a)
To yield completely; to quit; to abandon.
(b)
To despair of.
(c)
To addict, resign, or apply (one's self).
–
To give place
,
to withdraw; to yield one's claim.
–
To give points
.
(a)
In games of skill, to equalize chances by conceding a certain advantage; to allow a handicap.
(b)
To give useful suggestions.
[Colloq.]
–
To give rein
.
See under
Rein
,
Noun.
–
To give the sack
.
Same as
To give the bag
.
–
To give and take
.
(a)
To average gains and losses.
(b)
To exchange freely, as blows, sarcasms, etc.
–
To give time
(Law)
,
to accord extension or forbearance to a debtor.
Abbott.
–
To give the time of day
,
to salute one with the compliment appropriate to the hour, as “good morning.” “good evening”, etc.
–
To give tongue
,
in hunter's phrase, to bark; – said of dogs.
–
To give up
.
(a)
To abandon; to surrender. “Don't give up the ship.”
(b)
To make public; to reveal.
Syn. – To
Give
,
Confer
,
Grant
.
To give is the generic word, embracing all the rest. To confer was originally used of persons in power, who gave permanent grants or privileges; as, to confer the order of knighthood; and hence it still denotes the giving of something which might have been withheld; as, to confer a favor. To grant is to give in answer to a petition or request, or to one who is in some way dependent or inferior.

Give

,
Verb.
I.
1.
To give a gift or gifts.
2.
To yield to force or pressure; to relax; to become less rigid;
as, the earth
gives
under the feet
.
3.
To become soft or moist.
[Obs.]
Bacon .
4.
To move; to recede.
Now back he
gives
, then rushes on amain.
Daniel.
5.
To shed tears; to weep.
[Obs.]
Whose eyes do never
give

But through lust and laughter.
Shakespeare
6.
To have a misgiving.
[Obs.]
My mind
gives
ye're reserved
To rob poor market women.
J. Webster.
7.
To open; to lead.
[A Gallicism]
This, yielding,
gave
into a grassy walk.
Tennyson.
To give back
,
to recede; to retire; to retreat.

–
To give in
,
to yield; to succumb; to acknowledge one's self beaten; to cease opposition.
The Scots battalion was enforced to
give in
.
Hayward.
–
To give off
,
to cease; to forbear.
[Obs.]
Locke.
–
To give on
or
To give upon
.
(a)
To rush; to fall upon.
[Obs.]
(b)
To have a view of; to be in sight of; to overlook; to look toward; to open upon; to front; to face.
[A Gallicism: cf. Fr. donner sur.]
Rooms which
gave upon
a pillared porch.
Tennyson.
–
To give out
.
(a)
To expend all one's strength.
Hence:
(b)
To cease from exertion; to fail; to be exhausted; as, my feet being to give out; the flour has given out.
–
To give over
,
to cease; to discontinue; to desist.
–
To give up
,
to cease from effort; to yield; to despair; as, he would never give up.

Webster 1828 Edition

Give

GIVE

,
Verb.
T.
pret. gave; pp. given. [Heb. to give. The sense of give is generally to pass, or to transfer, that is, to send or throw.]
1.
To bestow; to confer; to pass or transfer the title or property of a thing to another person without an equivalent or compensation.
For generous lords had rather give than pay.
2.
To transmit from himself to another by hand, speech or writing; to deliver.
The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. Gen.3.
3.
To import; to bestow.
Give us of your oil, for our lamps are gone out. Matt.25.
4.
To communicate; as, to give an opinion; to give counsel or advice; to give notice.
5.
To pass or deliver the property of a thing to another for an equivalent; to pay. We give the full value of all we purchase. A dollar is given for a day's labor.
What shall a man give in exchange for this soul? Matt.16.
6.
To yield; to lend; in the phrase to give ear, which signifies to listen; to hear.
7.
To quit;in the phrase to give place, which signifies to
withdraw, or retire to make room for another.
8.
To confer; to grant.
What wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless? Gen 15.
9.
To expose; to yield to the power of.
Give to the wanton winds their flowing hair.
10. To grant; to allow; to permit.
It is given me once again to behold my friend.
11. To afford; to supply; to furnish.
Thou must give us also sacrifices and burnt offerings. Ex.10.
12. To empower; to license; to commission.
Then give thy friend to shed the sacred wine.
But this and similar phrases are probably elliptical; give for give power or license. So in the phrases,give me to understand, give me to know, give the flowers to blow, that is, to give power, to enable.
13. To pay or render; as, to give praise, applause or approbation.
14. To render; to pronounce; as, to give sentence or judgment; to give the word of command.
15. To utter; to vent; as, to give a shout.
16. To produce; to show; to exhibit as a product or result; as, the number of men divided by the number of ships, gives four hundred to each ship.
17. To cause to exist; to excite in another; as, to give offense or umbrage; to give pleasure.
18. To send forth; to emit; as, a stone gives sparks with steel.
19. To addict; to apply; to devote one's self, followed by the reciprocal pronoun. The soldiers give themselves to plunder. The passive participle is much used in this sense; as, the people are given to luxury and pleasure; the youth is given to study.
Give thyself wholly to them. 1 Tim.4.
20. To resign; to yield up; often followed by up.
Who say, I care not, those I give for lost.
21. To pledge; as, I give my word that the debt shall be paid.
22. To present for taking or acceptance; as, I give you my hand.
23. To allow or admit by way of supposition.
To give away, to alienate the title or property of a thing; to make over to another; to transfer.
Whatsoever we employ in charitable uses, during our lives, is given away from ourselves.
To give back, to return; to restore.
To give forth, to publish; to tell; to report publicly.
To give the hand, to yield preeminence, as being subordinate or inferior.
To give in, to allow by way of abatement or deduction from a claim; to yield what may be justly demanded.
To give over, to leave; to quit; to cease; to abandon; as, to give over a pursuit.
1.
To addict; to attach to; to abandon.
When the Babylonians had given themselves over to all manner of vice.
2.
To despair of recovery; to believe to be lost, or past recovery. The physician had given over the patient, or given the patient over.
3.
To abandon.
To give out, to utter publicly; to report; to proclaim; to publish. It was given out that parliament would assemble in November.
1.
To issue; to send forth; to publish.
The night was distinguished by the orders which he gave out to his army.
2.
To show; to exhibit in false appearance.
3.
To send out; to emit; as, a substance gives out steam or odors.
To give up, to resign; to quit; to yield as hopeless; as, to give up a cause; to give up the argument.
1.
To surrender; as, to give up a fortress to an enemy.
2.
To relinquish, to cede. In this treaty the Spaniards gave up Louisiana.
3.
To abandon; as, to give up all hope. They are given up to believe a lie.
4.
To deliver.
And Joab gave up the sum of the number of the people to the king. 2 Sam. 24.
To give one's self up, to despair of one's recovery; to conclude to be lost.
1.
To resign or devote.
Let us give ourselves wholly up to Christ in heart and desire.
2.
To addict; to abandon. He gave himself up to intemperance.
To give way, to yield; to withdraw to make room for. Inferiors should give way to superiors.
1.
To fail; to yield or force; to break or fall. The ice gave way and the horses were drowned. The scaffolding gave way. The wheels or axletree gave way.
2.
To recede; to make room for.
3.
In seamen's language, give way is an order to a boat's crew to row after ceasing, or to increase their exertions.

GIVE

,
Verb.
I.
giv.
To yield to pressure. The earth gives under the feet.
1.
To begin to melt; to thaw; to grow soft, so as to yield to pressure.
2.
To move; to recede.
Now back he gives,then rushes on amain.
To give in, to be back; to give way. [Not in use.]
To give into, to yield assent; to adopt.
This consideration may induce a translator to give in to those general phrases.
To give off, to cease; to forbear. [Little used.
To give on, to rush; to fall on. [Not in use.]
To give out, to publish; to proclaim.
1.
To cease from exertion; to yield; applied to persons. He labored hard, but gave out at last.
To give over, to cease; to act no more; to desert.
It would be well for all authors, if they knew when to give over, and to desist from any further pursuits after fame.

Definition 2024

give

give

English

Verb

give ‎(third-person singular simple present gives, present participle giving, simple past gave, past participle given)

  1. (transitive, may take two objects) To move, shift, provide something abstract or concrete to someone or something or somewhere.
    1. To transfer one's possession or holding of (something) to (someone).
      I gave him my coat.‎
      I gave my coat to the beggar.‎
      When they asked, I gave my coat.‎
    2. To make a present or gift of.
      I'm going to give my wife a necklace for her birthday.‎
      She gave a pair of shoes to her husband for their anniversary.‎
      He gives of his energies to the organization.‎
    3. To pledge.
      I gave him my word that I'd protect his children.‎
    4. To provide (something) to (someone), to allow or afford.
      I gave them permission to miss tomorrow's class.‎
      Please give me some more time.‎
    5. To cause (a sensation or feeling) to exist in.
      It gives me a lot of pleasure to be here tonight.‎
      The fence gave me an electric shock.‎
      My mother-in-law gives me nothing but grief.‎
    6. To carry out (a physical interaction) with (something).
      I want to give you a kiss.‎
      She gave him a hug.‎
      I'd like to give the tire a kick.‎
      I gave the boy a push on the swing.‎
      She gave me a wink afterwards, so I knew she was joking.‎
      • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 5, in The Celebrity:
        Then came a maid with hand-bag and shawls, and after her a tall young lady. She stood for a moment holding her skirt above the grimy steps, with something of the stately pose which Richter has given his Queen Louise on the stairway, […] .
    7. To pass (something) into (someone's) hand or the like.
      Give me your hand.‎
      On entering the house, he gave his coat to the doorman.‎
    8. To cause (a disease or condition) in, or to transmit (a disease or condition) to.
      My boyfriend gave me chlamydia.‎
      He was convinced that it was his alcoholism that gave him cancer.‎
  2. (transitive, may take two objects) To estimate or predict (a duration or probability) for (something).
    I give it ten minutes before he gives up.‎
    I give it a 95% chance of success.‎
    I'll give their marriage six months.‎
  3. (intransitive) To yield slightly when a force is applied.
    • 1992 November 17, Garry Wills, “prologue”, in Lincoln at Gettysburg, page 21:
      A soldier noticed how earth "gave" as he walked over the shallow trenches.
  4. (intransitive) To collapse under pressure or force.
    One pillar gave, then more, and suddenly the whole floor pancaked onto the floor below.‎
  5. (transitive) To provide, as, a service or a broadcast.
    They're giving my favorite show!‎
    • 2003, Iain Aitken, Value-Driven IT Management: Commercializing the IT Function, page 153
      […] who did not have a culture in which 'giving good presentation' and successfully playing the internal political game was the way up.
    • 2006, Christopher Matthew Spencer The Ebay Entrepreneur, page 248
      A friendly voice on the phone welcoming prospective new clients is a must. Don't underestimate the importance of giving good "phone".
  6. (intransitive) To lead (onto or into).
    The master bedroom gives onto a spacious balcony.‎
  7. (transitive, dated) To provide a view of.
    His window gave the park.
  8. To exhibit as a product or result; to produce; to yield.
    The number of men, divided by the number of ships, gives four hundred to each ship.
  9. To cause; to make; used with the infinitive.
    • Shakespeare
      But there the duke was given to understand / That in a gondola were seen together / Lorenzo and his amorous Jessica.
  10. To allow or admit by way of supposition.
    • Milton
      I give not heaven for lost.
  11. To attribute; to assign; to adjudge.
    • Sheridan
      I don't wonder at people's giving him to me as a lover.
  12. To communicate or announce (advice, tidings, etc.); to pronounce or utter (an opinion, a judgment, a shout, etc.).
  13. (dated) To grant power or permission to; to allow.
    • Rowe
      It is given me once again to behold my friend.
    • Alexander Pope
      Then give thy friend to shed the sacred wine.
  14. (reflexive) To devote or apply (oneself).
    The soldiers give themselves to plunder.
    That boy is given to fits of bad temper.
  15. (obsolete) To become soft or moist.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Francis Bacon to this entry?)
  16. (obsolete) To shed tears; to weep.
    • Shakespeare
      Whose eyes do never give / But through lust and laughter.
  17. (obsolete) To have a misgiving.
    • J. Webster
      My mind gives ye're reserved / To rob poor market women.
  18. To be going on, to be occurring
    What gives?‎

Synonyms

Antonyms

  • (transfer possession of): get, obtain, receive, take
  • (bend slightly when a force is applied): not bend/cede/flex/give/move/yield, resist

Derived terms

See also given, giver and giving

Translations

Noun

give ‎(uncountable)

  1. (uncountable) The amount of bending that something undergoes when a force is applied to it.
    This chair doesn't have much give.

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: hand · young · place · #154: give · ever · saw · things

Danish

Alternative forms

  • gi' (representing the spoken language)

Etymology

From Old Norse gefa, from Proto-Germanic *gebaną, from Proto-Indo-European *gʰab(ʰ)-.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ɡiː/, /ɡiːvə/, [ˈɡ̊iːˀ], [ˈɡ̊iːʋə]
  • Rhymes: -iː, -iːvɐ

Verb

give

  1. to give

Conjugation

Derived terms

Etymology

From Middle English given, from Old Norse gefa ‎(“to give”), from Proto-Germanic *gebaną ‎(“to give”). Displaced or merged with native Middle English yiven, ȝeven, from Old English ġiefan, from the same Proto-Germanic source (compare the obsolete inherited 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”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ɡɪv/
  • Rhymes: -ɪv

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