Give (g&ibreve_;v), v. t. [imp. Gave (gāv); p. p. Given (g&ibreve_;v'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, 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.
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For generous lords had rather give than pay. Young.
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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.
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What shall a man give in exchange for his soul ? Matt. xvi. 26.
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3. To yield; to furnish; to produce; to emit; as, flint and steel give sparks.
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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.
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5. To grant power or license to; to permit; to allow; to license; to commission.
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It is given me once again to behold my friend. Rowe.
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Then give thy friend to shed the sacred wine. Pope.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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9. To allow or admit by way of supposition.
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I give not heaven for lost. Mlton.
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10. To attribute; to assign; to adjudge.
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I don't wonder at people's giving him to me as a lover. Sheridan.
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11. To excite or cause to exist, as a sensation; as, to give offense; to give pleasure or pain.
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12. To pledge; as, to give one's word.
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13. To cause; to make; -- with the infinitive; as, to give one to understand, to know, etc.
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But there the duke was given to understand
That in a gondola were seen together
Lorenzo and his amorous Jessica. Shak.
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14. To afford a view of; as, his window gave the park.
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To give away, to make over to another; to transfer.
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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.]
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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.
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One that gives out himself Prince Florizel. Shak.
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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).
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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.”
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He has . . . given up
For certain drops of salt, your city Rome. Shak.
(b) To make public; to reveal.
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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. 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.
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