as in to relinquish
to give (something) over to the control or possession of another usually under duress
finally got my brother to cough up the dough he owed me
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Recent Examples of cough up
An advertiser who passes up on a $700,000 NFL unit in the spring can often expect to cough up as much as $875,000 for that very same unit come fall.
—
Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 25 Apr. 2025
After the Royals coughed up the lead in the top of the ninth inning, backup catcher Freddy Fermin came on as a pinch runner and scored the tying run.
—Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 23 Apr. 2025
Additionally, Ralph wasn’t required to cough up all of his financial documents and was granted permission to continue residing in the basement of their home.
—Elizabeth Ayoola, Essence, 21 Apr. 2025
The Bucks can’t afford to cough up the ball in their own trenches.
—Brian Sampson, Forbes.com, 18 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cough up
Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 25 Apr. 2025
After the Royals coughed up the lead in the top of the ninth inning, backup catcher Freddy Fermin came on as a pinch runner and scored the tying run.
—Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 23 Apr. 2025
Additionally, Ralph wasn’t required to cough up all of his financial documents and was granted permission to continue residing in the basement of their home.
—Elizabeth Ayoola, Essence, 21 Apr. 2025
The Bucks can’t afford to cough up the ball in their own trenches.
—Brian Sampson, Forbes.com, 18 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cough up
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cough up
Verb
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Last year, Sabalenka relinquished the Madrid Open title to Iga Świątek in the best WTA Tour match of the season.—
Matthew Futterman,
New York Times,
3 May 2025
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In the past month, many of these universities have been ordered to relinquish their academic independence, stripped of federal funds, had their students seized on the streets, and watched as faculty have begun an exodus to foreign academic institutions beyond the reach of the U.S. government.—
Drew Bernstein,
Forbes.com,
29 Apr. 2025
Verb
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This one, is rendered in moody, romantic tones of blue.—
José Criales-Unzueta,
Vogue,
8 May 2025
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At the same time, James and her peers helped students connect with experts in larger cities in professional fields; apply for admissions, grants and scholarships; and rendered whatever other assistance was needed.—
Doug Thompson,
Arkansas Online,
8 May 2025
Verb
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Despite peppering Providence goaltender Michael DiPietro with 40 shots while surrendering just 19, the Checkers fell 3-2 in Game 3 of their AHL Atlantic Division semifinal series.—
Colin Cerniglia,
Charlotte Observer,
8 May 2025
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The passenger got out of the car and surrendered, but state patrol officials said the driver refused to exit and pulled out a gun.—
Lauren Penington,
Denver Post,
7 May 2025
Verb
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Four days after the hearing, Nina and Harriet went to the gravesite to deliver the news.—
Erin Moriarty, Liza Finley,
CBS News,
4 May 2025
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But Isaac only has one other big scene after the opening credits, an extremely trope-y case of a villain (or, at least, an antagonist) delivering an autobiographical monologue while preparing to torture someone.—
Alan Sepinwall,
Rolling Stone,
4 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cough up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cough%20up. Accessed 18 May. 2025.
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