give it to

Idioms

Punish or reprimand, as in Dad really gave it to Tom for coming in so late. This expression, implying a physical or verbal attack, dates from the late 1500s. Also see give someone hell. In more recent times the expression gave rise to give it to someone straight, meaning “to tell someone something candidly and directly.” For example, I asked the doctor to give it to use straight about Mother's condition.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The daughter sees it as, “You’re going to give it to me eventually anyway, but you’d rather I struggle for two decades first.”

From MarketWatch

But I didn’t “give” it to her.

From Literature

"If they give it to Senegal, it won't be the end of the world. We will accept because we are satisfied that we reached the final."

From BBC

"I'm working to save money to give it to my family."

From BBC

“Just give it to me, all right? Before I change my mind about taking it.”

From Literature

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023