Crossword Dictionary

What's The Definition Of Give?

\Give\ (g[i^]v), v. t. [imp. {Gave} (g[=a]v); p. p. {Given} (g[i^]v"'n); p. pr. & vb. n. {Giving}.] [OE. given, yiven, yeven, AS. gifan, giefan; akin to D. geven, OS. ge[eth]an, OHG. geban, G. geben, Icel. gefa, Sw. gifva, Dan. give, Goth. giban. Cf. {Gift}, n.] 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. --Shak. {To give away}, to make over to another; to transfer. Whatsoever we employ in charitable uses during our lives, is given away from ourselves. --Atterbury. {To give back}, to return; to restore. --Atterbury. {To give the bag}, to cheat. [Obs.] I fear our ears have given us the bag. --J. Webster. {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}, n. {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}, n. {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. --Shak. Give out you are of Epidamnum. --Shak. (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). The Babylonians had given themselves over to all manner of vice. --Grew. {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}, n. {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.'' He has . . . given up For certain drops of salt, your city Rome. --Shak. (b) To make public; to reveal. I'll not state them By giving up their characters. --Beau. & Fl. (c) (Used also reflexively.) {To give up the ghost}. See under {Ghost}. {To give one's self up}, to abandon hope; to despair; to surrender one's self. {To give way}. (a) To withdraw; to give place. (b) To yield to force or pressure; as, the scaffolding gave way. (c) (Naut.) To begin to row; or to row with increased energy. (d) (Stock Exchange). To depreciate or decline in value; as, railroad securities gave way two per cent. {To give way together}, to row in time; to keep stroke. Syn: To {Give}, {Confer}, {Grant}. Usage: 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\, v. 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. --Shak. 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. They gave back and came no farther. --Bunyan. {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. This consideration may induce a translator to give in to those general phrases. --Pope. {To give off}, to cease; to forbear. [Obs.] --Locke. {To give} {on or 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. The gloomy staircase on which the grating gave. --Dickens. {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. It would be well for all authors, if they knew when to give over, and to desist from any further pursuits after fame. --Addison. {To give up}, to cease from effort; to yield; to despair; as, he would never give up.
\Give\, v. t. To afford a view of; as, his window gave the park.