| Phrasal verb | Main meaning |
|---|---|
give over [ɡɪv ˈəʊvə] | to stop (doing something) |
Other meanings
- to hand over; to surrender something to someone
- to devote or surrender oneself to something (give oneself over)
- to transfer or dedicate (a place) to a particular use
- to consign or abandon someone or something (often used in passive)
Example Sentences Using the Phrasal Verb "give over"
- Oh, give over — you're making that up!
- They gave over the keys to the new owners.
- She gave herself over to the music and forgot everything else.
- The old factory was given over to use as a community centre.
- They gave over the suspect to the police.
Features of Using "give over"
Separability:Optionally separable
Transitivity:Transitive and Intransitive
Level:B2
Verb:give
Particle:over
This phrasal verb has several senses and registers. It is commonly used informally in British English as an exclamation meaning “stop it” (e.g. “Oh, give over!”).
It is also used transitively to mean “hand over” or “surrender”, and in that sense it often appears with an object or with a following "to" (give something over to someone).
It can appear reflexively ("give oneself over to") to mean “devote oneself to”, and it occurs in passive forms ("be given over to") when something is allocated or dedicated to a use.
Other phrasal verbs with the verb give
give back
return something to its owner
give up
to stop trying or quit doing something
give away
to donate something for free
give in
to stop resisting, to surrender
give out
to distribute something to people
give off
to emit (a smell, light, heat, gas, etc.)
give into
to yield or surrender to something
give way
to yield or collapse
give onto
to open onto (a space, street, view, etc.)
give forth
to emit (a sound, smell, light, etc.)
🔗 Learn more about the irregular verb give, including its forms and usage.