give up
Featured
April 30, 2025
To give up means to surrender or stop trying. The phrase dates to the mid-1200s, carrying a meaning that connects to the soul. Give up the ghost, an older phrase, meant to die, to release one's spirit. The religious weight of surrendering something immaterial stuck to the word. Over centuries, giving up a struggle became the same as giving up a ghost. The phrase is haunted by its history. See more at https://www.theidioms.com/give-up/
Rate of Appearance in English Language Print
Google's Ngram project shows how often a pair of words has appeared in print every year since the 1800's.
Data from Google Books Ngram Viewer. Licensed under CC BY 3.0.
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