Give
Exceptional Expressions For Everyday Events
The Oxford English Dictionary contains dozens of definitions for give. The most common definition, however, is the physical transfer of an object. In a classroom, the teacher may ask students to give their permission slips to the class leader. A student may ask a friend to give him or her the ball while playing a game.
In addition to its use for physical objects, give can refer to the transfer of ideas. For example, a parent might say, “Give me a good reason for why you are late!” A teacher may ask students to “Give an example of this word in a sentence.”
Follow-Ups
- What is the difference between presenting an award and offering a reward?
- Would you grant a favor or assign a favor to a friend?
- If you donate an object, do you expect to receive money in exchange for it?
The Spanish Connection
Give comes from an Old English word with German roots. The Spanish word for to give is dar. The Spanish word for give is not a cognate. However, some of the synonyms for give have Spanish cognates such as transmit and transmitir.
Word Changes
- Misgive as a verb, meaning to raise doubt or fear, is today archaic or rarely used. A few members of its morphological family, however, are still common. For example, the noun misgiving is a feeling or thought of mistrust, apprehension, or loss of confidence.
- Some synonyms for give have technical definitions specific to science and other content areas. For example, in describing a flu virus transferred from person to person, transfer refers to the movement of a disease.
- A person’s given name is the person’s name or names bestowed upon him or her, rather than passed on by birth. The given name is in contrast to a person’s family name or surname, which is inherited. A given name is also distinct from a nickname, which is less formal.
